Three takeaways from Fresno State’s win over San Jose State, including an assist on defense

Fresno State took another forward step at the offensive end, playing through the 7-foot Orlando Robinson on Friday in a 79-64 victory over San Jose State at the Save Mart Center.

Robinson had his sixth double-double in seven games and he was almost there by halftime, finishing with 23 points and 14 rebounds.

But the assists numbers are still low, the turnovers still high and the assisted basket percentage one of the worst in the nation.

The Bulldogs (4-3, 2-3 Mountain West) really turned this game at the defensive end, after coach Justin Hutson inserted the 7-1 freshman Braxton Meah into the game along with Robinson.

With two 7-footers on the floor and the guards taking a bigger bite out of San Jose State guard Richard Washington, the Spartans had difficulty getting shots, helping fuel a 17-2 Bulldogs run. Meah, whether protecting the rim or switching off ball screens, was a high-energy and very long presence on the floor.

San Jose State (2-7, 0-5) came in the worst shooting team in the Mountain West Conference, but when Meah entered at the 15:31 mark in the second half the Spartans had hit 21 of 38 shots (55.3%).

They were just 5 of 17 (29.4%) the rest of the way with seven turnovers, allowing the Bulldogs to turn what had been a 5-point deficit when Meah hit the floor into a 15-point victory.

Washington, who knocked down some difficult shots in the first half in scoring 23 points, hit only 3 of 12 shots in the second half in finishing with 30.

Here are three takeaways from the game …

Playing the Bulldogs’ 7-footers

Meah and Robinson have not played a lot of minutes together and in the first half Friday, the freshman was on the floor for only two and had a stat line of all zeros. When Hutson put him into the game at the 15:31 mark he was expecting only that he would play hard, and he got a lot more.

“That’s one thing he has proven he will do, and he can guard outside and inside,” Hutson said. “He rim protects and he moves his feet well. He’s a little bit of a problem for the other guys at the rim, too, if we can get some dribble penetration on the offensive end.

“So many games, so many practices, you’re figuring it out. But it wasn’t a surprise how hard he played.”

His ability to switch on a ball screen at 7-1 has to be a tad disconcerting for the guy with the basketball, and when the Spartans did get into the paint they often had Meah or Robinson waiting to alter or block a shot.

“I was really impressed with Braxton and how he was able to kind of change the game defensively for us, protect the rim, switch out on some ball screens and move his feet,” associate head coach Tarvish Felton said.

One of the Spartans’ five baskets in the final 15:31 came in transition, off a steal and a layup by Washington.

Offensive efficiency still a work in progress

The Bulldogs had more turnovers than assists for the sixth time in seven games.

They came in averaging 10.3 assists per game, tied for 311th in the nation; 15.5 turnovers per game, 271st nationally; and it had assists on just 37.6% of its baskets to rank 337th.

Against the Spartans, they had 11 assists to 14 turnovers.

Hutson and the Bulldogs obviously still are fitting pieces together around Robinson, and at this point, the Bulldogs’ coach said, the turnovers are much more of a concern than the low assists numbers.

“We have shooters that have to be able to make a shot eventually,” he said. “I mean, we’re getting wide-open looks. Washington was spinning, twirling, fading away, and we had wide open looks right at the top of the key.

“Orlando could have a triple-double when he kicks it out if we can make some shots and I’ve got guys that can make shots. I believe in them. They have to shoot good ones, but we’re not going to get many assists until guys start knocking down some of those 3-pointers. But the turnovers is still a concern, a huge concern for us.”

Campbell making a move off bench

Hutson switching up his guards for the third time in five conference games, starting Isaiah Hill and Kyle Harding.

But Jordan Campbell, off the bench, put together a solid second game in a row and looks nothing like he did a year ago after gaining his eligibility as a midyear transfer from Oregon State. He forced everything back then, particularly at the offensive end, and that was not a good look when hitting just 30.4% of his shots and turning it over 12 times in limited minutes.

Against the Spartans, Campbell did the bulk of the work at the defensive end against Washington in the second half and packed a lot into 29 minutes on the floor. He scored 11 points with seven rebounds including four at the offensive end, two assists, one block and two steals.

“I’m so ecstatic he has played the way he has the past two game because there’s not a better kid than Jordan Campbell,” Hutson said.

“We’re asking everybody to defend, rebound, take care of the ball and play to your strengths and he defended, he rebounded, he took care of the ball and he played to his strengths. However long that’s going to take you to do, then you’re going to get an opportunity out there. Now, if somebody else does it a little better than you, maybe they take your opportunity. He is starting to take an opportunity and I hope it continues.”

Layup lines

• Robinson scored seven of his team-high 23 points at the free-throw line and has back-to-back games attempting 10 or more foul shots. He was 8 of 11 against Wyoming, 7 of 10 against the Spartans. The 7-foot sophomore had 10 or more foul shots in a game just once last season.
• Fresno State had 22 offensive rebounds and a 47-24 advantage on the boards. It has not had 20 or more offensive rebounds against a Division I opponent since it had 21 in an overtime loss to UNLV in 2014.
• With the offensive rebounds, the Bulldogs had a 21-5 advantage in second-chance points.
• The Bulldogs also had a significant advantage at the free-throw line, making more than twice as many as San Jose State attempted. Fresno State was 16 of 25 at the line, San Jose State 6 of 7.
• The Bulldogs and Spartans play the second of their two-game Mountain West series on Sunday at the Save Mart Center. Tip is 4 p.m. The Fresno State women, who had a Sunday game against San Jose State postponed due to COVID-19 issues in the Spartans’ program after a Friday game between the teams was put off because of contract tracing within the Bulldogs program, will play Cal State Bakersfield at noon.

This story was originally published January 8, 2021 at 8:08 PM.