Fresno State doesn’t end up with the shots, or the result, it wanted in double overtime
Fresno State hit some big shots, tough shots, shots that seven or so times out of 10 they do not make. Threes, basically. Jordan Campbell hit three big ones in scoring a career-high 19 points, before fouling out. Anthony Holland hit four. Junior Ballard hit one, down by three with one second remaining, to take the Bulldogs into overtime at San Diego State.
But in a 65-64 double-overtime loss on Thursday at Viejas Arena the Bulldogs still were just 8 of 22 on threes including two excruciating misses, the first coming out of a timeout with eight seconds remaining and the score tied in the first overtime and the second coming out of a timeout with seven seconds to go down one in the second overtime.
Both times the Bulldogs, ranked 10th in the Mountain West in 3-point field goal percentage at 33.2%, ended up with a 3-point attempt. Both times it wasn’t what they wanted against the Aztecs, who are leading the conference in 3-point field goal defense at 30.2%.
Both times, they missed. Deon Stroud on the first, Isaiah Hill the second.
“We had the ball twice with a chance to win,” coach Justin Hutson said. “At the end of the first overtime, Deon was supposed to turn the corner and get a jump shot or hit (Orlando Robinson) on a pick and roll. We wanted to get that off and be aggressive and we didn’t get the shot that we wanted. The second time, I thought we had ‘O’ open in the low post and missed him. Once we started to scramble there and didn’t get ‘O’ the ball in the low post they started to switch and now we had to get a good shot.
“We have to do a better job of executing there, starting with me.”
That has not been easy for the Bulldogs (18-11, 8-8 in the MW), who with the loss are locked into the No. 6 seed next week at the conference tournament in Las Vegas. Included in their eight conference losses are a 77-73 setback at Nevada, a 68-63 loss to Boise State in overtime at the Save Mart Center, a 61-59 loss to Wyoming on the home floor, a 60-57 loss to UNLV at home and now the one-point loss at San Diego State (20-7, 12-4).
It did not help that Fresno State allowed San Diego State 10 offensive rebounds, leading to 12 points. Or, that it turned over the basketball 14 times, leading to 16 of the Aztecs’ points.
Bulldogs’ fifth loss in MW play by five points or less
In conference play only one other opponent had 10 or more offensive rebounds – Wyoming had 11, in beating the Bulldogs. UC Irvine, with 11, is the only other team to have 10 or more, in the first 29 games. But they can only pack up the positives and hit the road with a quick turnaround with a regular-season finale on Saturday at Wyoming.
“It’s tough,” Campbell said. “I feel like the more we stay together, that’s the key. The more we stay together, the more that you know your brother has your back, knowing that they’re there for you on and off the court, it makes it a little easier to get over these types of losses.”
There definitely were a few pluses, including 28 productive minutes from backup big Braxton Meah, a double-double from Robinson (17 and 11) in a monster 48 minutes on the floor and Campbell.
The junior guard had not scored 10 or more points since he had 11 in a 73-43 rout at San Jose State on Feb. 1 and had knocked down just 2 of his past 16 shots from the 3-point line. But with the Aztecs making the going miserable for Robinson in the first half (he was 0 of 1 with four turnovers) and the Bulldogs needing offense, Campbell found it.
“I just felt like I stayed in the moment and just played,” he said. “I feel like I live up to big-time moments and tonight was a testament to that, with my teammates. I didn’t think as much as I usually do. I just lost myself in the game and just played how I was seeing it and if I felt like I was open I took the shot and I took it with confidence.”
Bulldogs notes
Fresno State will open the Mountain West Tournament on Wednesday at 4 p.m. against No. 11 San Jose State. The Bulldogs beat the Spartans 79-59 at the Save Mart Center and 73-43 in San Jose. …
San Diego State hit just 22 of 61 shots, 36.1%. It is the 13th time this season the Bulldogs held an opponent to less than 40%. They were 11-1 in the first 12. …
Hutson on the close losses and moving on: “They hurt, you put your all into something and it’s going to hurt sometimes. But that’s what we signed up for. We have always responded well, and it doesn’t always have to be a win for you to respond well. You respond by your togetherness and your effort in the next one.” …
Up next: Fresno State at Wyoming
When: Saturday, 1 p.m.
Where: Arena-Auditorium, Laramie, Wyo.
Streaming: Mountain West Network
Radio: Bulldog Sports Network (Paul Loeffler, Marc Q. Jones)
Find it fast: Fresno (AM1340), Bakersfield (AM970), Visalia (AM1130), Modesto (FM92.9), Stockton (AM1280), Bulldogs app, iHeartMedia app
The records: Fresno State (18-11, 8-8 in the MW), Wyoming (23-7, 12-5)
The Cowboys: Wyoming had the look of an NCAA Tournament team a few weeks ago, but has lost three of its past four games and four of its past six including a 64-57 loss at UNLV on Wednesday. The wins in that stretch came against Air Force and Nevada, which are 4-13 and 6-11 in conference play. The Cowboys still have two of the toughest matchups in the Mountain West in Graham Ike and Hunter Maldonado, who are averaging 20.1 and 19.0 points per game. Ike is averaging 13.8 points and 11.3 rebounds over the past four games, but has struggled at the offensive end, hitting only 35.6% of 59 shots. Maldonado had 22 and 10 with seven assists at UNLV, but missed time with an eye injury and after the loss was listed as questionable to play against the Bulldogs.