As Fresno State’s Isaiah Hill celebrated a buzzer-beating three that lifted the Bulldogs over San Jose State 85-82, several Spartans trudged to the sideline.
They’ll all have a long, quiet bus ride back to San Jose to think about what just transpired tonight and what it could mean moving forward.
ICE ICE ICE IN HIS VEINS🚨❄️ HILL with the buzzer beater!! pic.twitter.com/reIV0otu77
— Fresno State Men’s Basketball (@FresnoStateMBB) January 17, 2024
Some may vent about the charge that was called on Myron “MJ” Amey Jr. (13 points) with four seconds left that could’ve given SJSU (8-10, 1-4 MW) a three-point lead. On that pivotal play, Amey sliced into the paint, put his body through a Bulldog defender’s chest and dropped ball in the basket. For a brief moment it appeared that Amey would notch his second game-winning shot in a row.
In a 70-67 win over Air Force last Saturday, Amey drilled a miraculous three-pointer from the corner with just over a second left to give the Spartans their first win in conference play. In doing so, SJSU had confidence it could overcome its 0-3 start in conference play and win eight of its next 14 games to be eligible for a CBI appearance.
Instead, on Tuesday night in FSU’s (8-9, 1-3 MW) Save Mart Center, Amey sat below the rim in utter dismay that the ref didn’t call a block. Opting for a charge instead. Not long after, he had to watch Hill drive the length of the court, spot up from the wing and nail a three-pointer.
But the Spartans can’t expect to win after allowing 85 points, getting outscored 40-24 on points in the paint and allow Hill to score 16 of his 24 points and dish five of his nine assists in the second half.
So now SJSU is left with the frustration of shooting 17-for-29 (59%) from deep and still losing. SJSU wing Tibet Gorener scored a career-high 32 points on a remarkable 7-for-9 clip from three and fellow wing Trey Anderson netted 21 points on a 5-for-5 clip from three.
Catch and shoot 3️⃣ for @yungXtey
FS 70 SJSU 68
📺https://t.co/DhumoI3A1J#AllSpartans pic.twitter.com/sCmivBzyQX— San Jose State Men’s Basketball (@SanJoseStateMBB) January 17, 2024
The fact that SJSU allowed a whopping 85 points is unsettling. For starters, this has been a driving force in SJSU’s shaky start and now puts its chance of heading back to the CBI in jeopardy. Furthermore, if FSU is averaging the second-least amount of points per game (68.7) in the conference, how will SJSU fare over the course of its forthcoming six-game slate which will feature four teams in the top 44 of the NET and five teams in the top 91?
The Spartans next game will come against New Mexico which is leading the conference in points per game (82.6) and recently upset San Diego State 88-70.
If SJSU goes 1-5 in that six game stretch, its record will drop to 9-16, forcing it to go a remarkable 9-2 to be in position to make back-to-back postseason appearances for the first time in program history.
Achieving that goal seemed tangible last Tuesday after the Spartans nearly upset then No.19 ranked SDSU, 81-78. For that close loss came days after SJSU surrendered a nine-point second half lead to Boise State and fell 78-69.
Although the final result was back-to-back losses, it offered hope.
This loss tonight, however, even if it happened because of a coin flip of a call and once-in-a-lifetime shot, only shaves that hope.
