Fresno State went on the road against Mountain West opponent San Jose State and won by a decisive score of 69-57 on Feb. 6 at the Provident Credit Union Event Center.
Fresno State’s guard Xavier DuSell led the team in scoring with 23 points after scoring a career-high with six 3-pointers.
The final score, however, was no indication of how the game went for the majority of the night. The Bulldogs went on a 24-7 run to end the game, which gave it a massive victory, but this was only after San Jose State kept it close for the majority of the contest.
Bulldog guard Isaiah Hill got the ‘Dogs on the board first with a mid-range jumper on their first possession of the night, creating a 2-0 lead.
Each team spent time scoring back-and-forth before Fresno State went on a 12-4 run in the first half which secured a 19-12 advantage.
The Bulldogs’ sizable lead was short-lived as the Spartans came roaring back in the first half, led partially by the momentum of a huge alley-oop from Spartan forward Tibet Görener to center Adrame Diongue.
At halftime, the score was 34-33 in favor of Fresno State.
After the break, Fresno State came out with a purpose, scoring again on its first possession of the half. This time, Bulldog center Enoch Boakye led the team with a slam dunk, bringing the lead to 36-33.
Shortly after, a charging foul was called against the Spartan’s leading scorer of the season, guard Myron “MJ” Amey Jr., which forced the Spartans to be cautious with his playing time for the rest of the game.
Görener hit a shot from deep early in the second half to cut the Bulldogs’ lead down to 43-40, but that wasn’t the only significance of this shot. With that 3-point basket, Görener became San Jose State’s all-time leader in 3-pointers made with 162.
Later in the second half, Boakye continued his dominance in the paint, with back-to-back possessions ending in one-handed dunks by the Bulldog center. This led to a 51-50 Fresno State lead with eight minutes left in the game.
The Bulldogs would not surrender the lead again after this, as they would go on to win by 12.
The ‘Dogs improved to 10-13 overall and 3-7 in Mountain West play in Tuesday’s win. Fresno State’s next game will be on the road against Air Force on Feb. 10.
