By Jarra Gojolo — Content Editor
You could say, it was just his Knight.
Seneca Knight scored a career-high 28 points, as the San Jose State men’s basketball team (6-11, 2-4 MW) defeated Nevada (10-6, 3-1 MW) at home on Wednesday.
It takes a village
What better way to to break out of a rough stretch, than by scoring a career high?
Knight shot 32 percent from this field in the five games before his Wednesday night outburst, only hitting two total threes during that stretch.
Knight acknowledged the few game stretch where he “struggled,” using it to preface the efforts of the entire squad to get him back on track.
“My teammates believed in me and were telling me, ‘keep working hard, keep shooting,’” Knight said. “They just found me open and I was able to hit the shots.”
Knight was aggressive all night, getting to the rim at will and forcing Nevada to put him at the free throw line, where he made eight of his 12 attempts. Knight also had the jump-shot working, draining four threes and pulling up from mid-range.
Head coach Jean Prioleau says Knight’s performances correlate with another SJSU guard.
“Brae Ivey’s the one that’s fueling all of this,” Prioleau said. “What’s happening is, the other guys — in this case Seneca — is seeing [Ivey’s work ethic], and he’s putting in the same amount of work. When you do that over time, eventually the things that you do in practice will start to align in the game.”
“Seneca’s always played really hard. Always. Now he’s starting to hopefully take that next step.”
Hitting the right notes
Coming into Wednesday’s game, Nevada guard Jazz Johnson was 13th among qualified players in D-I 3-point percentage. But a medley of defenders — including guards Omari Moore and the aforementioned Seneca Knight — held Johnson to 3-13 shooting on the night.
“We was just trying to keep guys fresh that were guarding him,” Knight said. “He’s a real active player, like running around the court a lot, so we were just rotating so everybody could be fresh.”
The Spartans harassed Johnson all night, making him take uncomfortable shots and forcing him into a turnover late in the second half.
“We just tried to switch guys on him so they didn’t get too tired,” Coach Prioleau said after the game. “Omari Moore is really long, he’s a really good defender so that helped.”
Johnson was coming off a career night against Boise State. He scored 34 points, including eight 3-pointers, to defeat the Broncos 83-66.
“He’s a hell of a player,” Prioleau said. “It’s a testament to our guys that they were able to answer the call.”
Competing with the best
So far, the Spartans have beaten a solid Hofstra team, a 13-2 New Mexico and now a very solid Nevada squad. They’ve also stayed close with then-ranked Utah State and a now #7 ranked San Diego State.
After the early-season drubbings at the hands of PAC-12 opponents, the Spartans have proven they can play up to competition.
“It took a prayer three from San Diego State to beat us,” Coach Prioleau said. “The way our schedule is structured, we’re playing against the perennial top teams every game. It’s a challenge, we accept the challenge, we’re not backing down. We’re gonna be ready to play no matter where it is. The only way you get to that moment, and that type of mentality, is to work.”
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