By Sofia Wright — Content Editor
San Jose State men’s basketball snapped its 8-game losing streak in its last non-conference game of the year. The Spartans (4-10) found success against the Pepperdine Waves (7-7) with a 83-68 win.
With four wins, they’ve now matched the win totals from the previous two seasons with 4-26 and 4-27 campaigns.
New Year, new look?
SJSU was lead by Brae Ivey’s career-high 23 points, and a whole lot of threes. Ivey was 5-of-8 from long-distance. He was in good company as freshman Omari Moore and sophomore Seneca Knight chipped in with 12 points each.
“We just really want to use this moment going into league [play],” Moore said. “Our last two previous league games we fell short, but we were playing good basketball so we want to get back on that page against New Mexico come new year.”
Taking Care of the Ball
Along with his 12 points, Knight posted the most well-rounded game of his career as he added a career-high 10 rebounds and a career-best six assists. This was the first double-double of his career.
He and sophomore Zach Chappell tallied six assists a piece, and the team totalled 19 for the game.
Apart from sharing the ball, the team took care of it.
“When you know your offense, there’s not as much faulty decision-making,” Ivey said. “Pepperdine, they don’t really pressure the ball … were able to run what we wanted to comfortably.”
The Spartans had a season-low seven turnovers, and had 11-or-more in their previous 13 games. They also matched a season-high eight steals against the Waves.
Bring on the Bench
SJSU’s bench outscored Pepperdine’s 19-9.
“Our guys battled,” said head coach Jean Prioleau. “I think we’ve been playing well in spurts and tonight was the first time we put two halves together.”
Ivey attested to the team’s preparation as they were back practicing on Christmas Day.
Good teams have depth. And that’s what the Spartans showed at times against the Waves. Let’s see how long it can last, though.
The team is back in action against New Mexico on New Year’s Day. Tip-off at 7 p.m. at the Event Center.
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