Spring Break
Missed it by that much
Despite close game, SJSU loses to Utah State
John Hornberg
Issue date: 2/18/08 Section: Sports
|
In a game where neither team led by more than six points, Spartans traded baskets with the Utah State Aggies for much of the game, losing a 61-60 contest in the final seconds last Thursday at the Event Center.
Down by three with 13 seconds remaining, two last-second 3-point shots for the Spartans by Christine Martin and Alisha Hicks missed. Myosha Barnes' layup as time expired proved to be too little too late.
Martin said the goal was to look for Emily Nichols for the final shot.
"We were down by three, so we wanted to get outside the arc," said the freshman forward. "I was going to come up and set a screen and space. When she didn't have the shot, she looked for me."
The Spartans had the shots they wanted but could not capitalize and found themselves on the wrong end of the final score.
Utah State led by four early in the game, a lead which was erased when the Spartans went on an eight-point run, with Martin contributing two 3-pointers.
Even though the Spartans opened the second half with the first four points, the Aggies would follow with an 11-3 run over the next few minutes to take the lead. The Spartans came back to tie the game at 57 apiece with less than two minutes left in the game.
Although they shot a meager 35.5 percent from the field during the game, the Spartans converted on 45 percent of their 3-pointers.
"They switched up the defense," Martin said. "When they were in the zone it was easy to get outside."
Martin was second on the team with 13 points, including three 3-pointers. She also added five rebounds and two steals.
Emily Nichols had several good looks from 3-point range, going 5-7 from beyond the arc, to finish with a team-high 15 points.
SJSU was without leading scorer Natalie White, who was serving a suspension for violating team policy.
Guard Brittany Imaku had three points and three assists, and tied for the team lead with six rebounds. She also and led the team with three steals before fouling out late in the game.
Imaku said the way the team played was a positive.
"We were in the game the whole way," she said.
Utah State got a majority of its scoring from three players. Jamelah Brown and Jenny Gross each had 16 points, while Taylor Richards had 15.
The Spartans held the Aggie's bench players to just one point in the second half.
SJSU assistant coach Jodi Greve said the team played well defensively, highlighting that the Spartans forced eight Aggie turnovers in the game.
"They played a lot better as a team, and they got more results out of it," she said. "Building off that going into Louisiana Tech is a good deal."
Unfortunately any momentum the Spartans built in their narrow loss to the Aggies wasn't enough to carry over, as they were unable to come away with a victory on the road Saturday against Louisiana Tech, losing 70-54.
San Jose State's next game is against New Mexico State Thursday at 7 p.m. at the Event Center
Be the first to comment on this story