By Jarra Gojolo — Content Editor
Hangover where?
Richard Washington hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with six seconds left, as the Spartans (5-10, 1-2 MW) defeated the University of New Mexico 88-85 on New Years Day. Here are a few things we saw:
Please Excuse Me For Being Clutch
Roddy Richard was an assassin Wednesday, plain and simple.
Washington scored 25 points and hit seven threes, both season-highs as a Spartan.
The barrage started in the first half, as he hit five threes to help pull the Spartans out of an early 14-point deficit.
Washington and SJSU would turn that deficit into a 10-point halftime lead.
In the second half Washington was quiet until it counted.
Down by one with eight seconds left, Zach Chappell found Washington open in the right corner. He pump-faked to dispatch a charging UNM defender, stepped to his left once, and drained another big shot for SJSU.
Washington was also the hero for the Spartans victory against Hofstra, draining three three-pointers late to seal the season-opening upset.
Turnovers Galore
The Spartans’ extended 35-11 first half run was fueled by 10 UNM turnovers, including four from guard Jaquan Lyle.
SJSU led by as much as 18 in the second half, but the Lobos began to whittle away down the stretch.
The Spartans committed eight turnovers during that run, capped off by a Zach Chappell travel that led to UNM’s go-ahead free throws.
After Washington’s dagger to put the Spartans ahead, UNM guard Zane Martin dribbled the ball off his leg with three seconds left to help put the final nail in the Lobos’ coffin.
Back and Forth
The game was full of 10-point lead swings on both sides.
The Lobos started the game on a 23-9 run, followed by a SJSU run to make it 46-36 at halftime.
Out of the break the Spartans extended their lead to 62-44, then UNM stormed back to lead 85-84 before Washington’s final shot.
“We didn’t handle our lead very well,” head coach Jean Prioleau said.
“We turned it over, we couldn’t make free throws, and we couldn’t stop Jaquan Lyle from going to the basket at all.”
The Spartans handled what needed to be handled at the end though.
“Basketball is a game of runs,” Washington said.
“They went on their runs, we went on our runs, it’s about who’s gonna finish. And what we did toward the end was finish.
Follow Jarra on Twitter @JarraGojolo
