Fresno State Bulldogs vs. Seattle University Redhawks
Breakdown: Bulldogs
If there was ever a time Fresno State was in a “must-win” situation, that time is now.
Fresno State has dropped four straight conference games, but step out away from Western Athletic Conference opponents tonight when it takes on Seattle at home tonight.
Head coach Steve Cleveland’s team opened WAC play with a flurry, winning its opening three games and eclipsed the .500 mark for the first time all season.
But after last Thursday’s heartbreaking loss to lowly Hawaii, the ‘Dogs were left searching for answers. In the loss, Fresno State had three players score in double figures, but got little production from the other starters and the bench.
Fresno State does have a winning record at home this year (5-4) but desperately needs a late-season turnaround to avoid finishing without a winning record for the fourth consecutive year.
Greg Smith will have the tall task of containing Seattle’s leading scorer Aaron Broussard in the paint. Smith has struggled lately with interior defense after giving up 13 points and 10 rebounds to Hawaii’s Vander Joaquim and 18 points to Idaho’s Kyle Barone.
The ‘Dogs will look to get solid perfomances from their backcourt combination of Kevin Olekaibe (10.2 points per game) and Garrett Johnson (8.6 points per game), who have had recent shooting slumps.
Breakdown: Seattle
Unlike Fresno State, the Redhawks have played relatively well in their recent games.
Seattle has won four of its last six games, a decent performance for a squad that opened the season 3-8.
Lead by 6-foot-5-inch junior big man Aaron Broussard, Seattle has the chance to put together back-to-back wins for just the second time this season.
Head coach Cameron Dollar is in his second season leading the Redhawks, but has a struggling squad this year that hasn’t quite lived up to last season’s squad that went 17-14.
In his first season as head coach last year, Dollar took down the ‘Dogs in a thrilling finish 85-84, but had a difficult time containing Fresno State’s Greg Smith who scored 24 points and snagged 10 rebounds.
Seattle has four players averaging double-figure scoring this season, but are really led by Broussard’s play on the block.
Dollar’s team is just 2-9 on the road this season, including three losses in California.
But when the Redhawks lose, it typically isn’t pretty. In Seattle’s 12 losses, it has been outscored by an average of 16. When the team wins, however, it is only by an average of six points per game.
Seattle, who does not belong to a conference, is just two years removed from posting a 21-8 record, but still lost to Fresno State 79-58.