Three takeaways from Fresno State’s victory over San Jose State, including the inside game

It wasn’t that long ago, not even two weeks, that Fresno State looked lost at the offensive end. Short practice time and games due to COVID-19, the Bulldogs were dreadful in their first two conference games, a pair of 22-point losses at Colorado State.

But they appear to have put some pieces together very quickly after beating up San Jose State 80-65 on Sunday at the Save Mart Center, with Deon Stroud leading the Bulldogs to a third win in a row.

Stroud scored a team-high 22 points in 23 minutes on the floor, hitting 8 of 12 shots including 5 of 6 from the 3-point line. In the Bulldogs’ first seven games, Stroud was 7 of 17 from three.

Fresno State (5-3, 3-3 Mountain West) hit a season-high 13 threes and at 44.8% were far better there than they had been against Division I opponents — counting backward it had hit 26.9%, 33.3%, 31.3%, 20% and 17.4%.

The Bulldogs also had a season-high tying 14 assists, matching the number they had in a victory over NCAA Division II Fresno Pacific.

“I was a little frustrated with trying to figure things out before you can,” coach Justin Hutson said. “You need experience. You need game time You need practice time, Otherwise, we’re just talking about theory. In theory, what we can do. In theory, what this young man can do.

“That was a little frustrating early. It’s time now to continue to let them play, play Bulldog basketball, which is defend, rebound play to your strengths, share the ball, and let’s see who is stepping up and we’ve had a couple of guys step up in this three-game win streak.”

Here are three takeaways from the game …

Bulldogs at the rim

The Spartans’ guards had a rough time trying to stay in front of Stroud and Jordan Campbell, who scored 16 points with nine rebounds, one assist, two blocks and two steals, and that is an area the Bulldogs have improved dramatically from past seasons.

Fresno State had difficulty in the past finishing at the rim and through contact and has had some rough games converting even layups.

But Stroud and Campbell both are physical players when driving, and coupled with forward Orlando Robinson working in the paint the Bulldogs had hit 57.1% of their shots inside the 3-line against Division I opponents.

They started Sunday 20th in the nation in 2-point field goal percentage.

A year ago they hit just 49%, tied for 193th in the nation.

Campbell made six field goals in the victory over the Spartans, four coming on drives to the basket and layups.

Stroud had the five threes, but also scored on two drives.

“We’re figuring out how to play together, and how to play off each other,” Robinson said. “The aggressiveness from Jordan Campbell and Deon Stroud is something we need on this team. It was fun playing with them.”

Stroud maturing with Bulldogs’ offense

Stroud, the former San Joaquin Memorial High standout and Texas-El Paso transfer, was in the starting lineup at the beginning of the season and then he wasn’t with Hutson and his staff looking for more consistency.

But he has progressed over the past five games — playing just an average of 19.6 minutes in that stretch, Stroud has hit 29 of 51 shots, including 9 of 14 from the 3-point line, 56.9% and 64.3%, in scoring 16.4 points.

The difference for him?

“My mindset, for sure,” he said. “I came a long way with my mindset. Before I’d say I was young-minded.

“But now with the coaches and the older players, they push us to be more mature, not lollygag around. So, I guess, maturity, really.”

Down goes the three

Hutson said after the first game of this series against San Jose State that Robinson could be a triple-double threat if the Bulldogs could knock down some shots.

They did Sunday, and Robinson ended up with 11 points, seven rebounds and passing the ball out of double teams a career-high six assists including four in a stretch of a little more than three minutes in the second half.

They went like this …

• Junior Ballard for three, 5:40 first
• Stroud for three, 4:28 first
• Ballard for three, 11:24 second
• Stroud for three, 10:05 second
• Stroud jump shot, 8:58 second
• Braxton Meah jump shot, 8:00 second

“The message (in practice) really has just been to play together and try to build some type of team chemistry, a really good team chemistry,” Robinson said.

“Due to the circumstances, we haven’t had many practices so the practices that we do have we just try to work on playing together and that’s the key, really, taking good shots and taking care of the ball.”

Layup lines

• The Bulldogs have won three games in a row for the first time since a four-game winning streak toward the end of the 2018-’19 season.
• Fresno State at halftime was hitting a higher percentage of its shots from three (46.2%) than from two (44.4%) and from the free throw line (43.8%). The Bulldogs were last in the Mountain West in 3-point percentage coming in, but were 6 of 13 there in the first 20 minutes.
• The Bulldogs had 16 offensive rebounds and are averaging 14.1 per game, second in the Mountain West behind New Mexico (14.4).
• Fresno State was only 9 of 20 at the foul line (45%). It has hit 50% or less in three of its eight games and 70% or better just once.
• Fresno State led by as many as 29 points, 74-45 with 7:31 to play following a stretch where the Bulldogs hit 7 of 8 shots.

Up next for the Bulldogs

FRESNO STATE AT NEVADA

When, where: 8 p.m. PST Friday at Lawlor Events Center in Reno

TV/radio: FS1/ESPN (AM 940)

Records: Bulldogs 5-3, 3-3 Mountain West; Nevada 8-5, 3-3

Series: Nevada leads 58-44

Coaches: Justin Hutson (39-31, in third season); Steve Alford (27-17, in second season; 536-286 overall)

On Nevada: The Wolf Pack in conference play have swept a series against 0-6 New Mexico, split with 1-5 Air Force and were swept by 3-1 San Diego State. Nevada has played more games than any team in the Mountain West and started Sunday ranked eighth in field goal percentage (.438) and seventh in scoring margin (+4.23). Grant Sherfield, a 6-2 guard and transfer from Wichita State, is leading the Wolf Pack in scoring, averaging 17.8 points per game.

Bulldogs women lose to Bakersfield

The Fresno State women, down two starters due to COVID-19 protocols, lost 81-69 to Cal State Bakersfield on Sunday.

The Bulldogs were scheduled to play San Jose State on Friday and again on Sunday, but with an undisclosed number of players in quarantine after coming into contact with someone outside the program that had tested positive for the coronavirus they did not have enough players for the first game of the series.

The second game of the Mountain West Conference series was postponed as well, due to coronavirus-related issues in the Spartans’ program.

That left Fresno State scrambling to find a game, and the Roadrunners made the drive up the 99 and beat the Bulldogs with Jayden Eggleston recording a double-double with 13 points and 13 rebounds.

Fresno State (4-5) was without guard Aly Gamez and forward Maddi Utti, the reigning Player of the Year in the conference. Haley Cavinder led the Bulldogs with 17 points and eight rebounds and Hanna Cavinder added 14 points with five assists.

The Bulldogs hit 34.8% of their shots, including 5 of 26 (19.2%) from the 3-point line.

Wrestling postponed

The Fresno State wrestling team had dates Jan. 9 at Stanford and Jan. 15 vs. Wyoming postponed. The Bulldogs’ next scheduled action is Jan. 24 with duals againt North Dakota State and Arkansas-Little Rock at San Luis Obispo.

This story was originally published January 10, 2021 at 6:23 PM with the headline "Three takeaways from Fresno State’s victory over San Jose State, including the inside game."