Fresno State has monster in Orlando Robinson, but after loss must address elephant in room
Fresno State forward Orlando Robinson put up some huge numbers Saturday at Wyoming, scoring 34 points with nine rebounds and five assists.
The 34 points were a career high, as were 14 foul shots in getting there. The five assists, also a career high.
He scored more than half of the Bulldogs’ points in a 68-64 overtime loss to the Cowboys at the Arena-Auditorium in Laramie, with a massive 48.3% usage rate.
All of those numbers sum up how much the 7-foot junior carried his team for 43 minutes, but it all came in another close loss, the Bulldogs dropping a sixth Mountain West Conference game by five points or less. Four of those losses have come in February and March, as the Bulldogs head into the Mountain West Conference Tournament as the No. 6 seed and a Wednesday game against 11th-seeded San Jose State.
“Coming up short, again, it hurts,” Robinson said. “All these games we’re coming up short, it’s painful. I know the Red Wave and everything I know it’s painful too because we’re right there and we’re always coming up short.
“We’re just trying to find that next gear to take it to the next level so when we get in these tough situations that we can just execute and do what we need to do to finish games off and not even give them a chance to come back. I mean, it hurts.”
It also illustrates how badly the Bulldogs (18-12, 8-9 MW) need some consistency up and down the rotation.
At Wyoming (24-7, 13-5) and through all of those six close losses, the Bulldogs just have not been able to get it, or enough of it. The other big number on the stat sheet: the Bulldogs’ turnover rate, 26.6%.
That is a lot to overcome, particularly in a low-possession game, and it has been a problem down the stretch.
The Bulldogs’ turnover rate against Division I opponents is 17.3%. But it was 21.1% in a 1-point, double-overtime loss at San Diego State on Thursday, 20.6% and 22.2% in victories over New Mexico and Air Force, and 26.4% in a loss to the Aztecs at the Save Mart Center.
“Jemarl (Baker) said it perfectly in the locker room,” Robinson said. “He said if we don’t pay attention to the little things we’re not going to win and that is what it is right there. Little things, in the tournament, that’s what we need to focus on, because we’re in every game to the last minute and like one small detail is monumental. Going into this weekend, that is going to be the main focus and once we get that, we’re going to be unstoppable.”
Little things add up to big problem for Bulldogs
Unstoppable might be a stretch, but when the Bulldogs do limit turnovers and shooting turnovers they can do some damage. The Bulldogs’ 15th turnover against the Cowboys came at the 7:39 mark and Wyoming took it and knocked down a three to go up 48-38.
But Fresno State did not turn it over again through the end of regulation, with Robinson scoring 11 of its final 16 points including seven at the line.
It got up one on a Robinson layup with 37 seconds to go, and the junior forward made a huge play at the defensive end, blocking a shot under the basket by Hunter Thompson and securing the rebound.
The Cowboys ended up fouling Isaiah Hill and while knocking down foul shots in a tight game with 10 seconds to go is not a little thing, the Bulldogs’ point guard made only the second of two free throws.
Fresno State out of a timeout then let Hunter Maldonado get to the lane, where he was fouled and knocked down two free throws to send the Bulldogs into their second overtime game in three days while taking the floor at elevation and just 38 hours after they walked off the floor after a double-overtime loss at San Diego State.
“Any experience is a good experience, but it has to hurt,” Robinson said. “It hurts me. But the team has to feel that hurt and come together. I have to make sure that I get my guys to understand that, now, it’s all or nothing.
“It’s going to hurt if we’re watching the tournament at home so if anything this is where we need to some together, band together, understand what we need to do as a team to win as a collective and go out there and execute because this is our last chance. This is all we’ve got.”
Bulldogs’ notes
The Fresno State bench was outscored 14-4, and seven of the 17 turnovers came in very limited minutes from Donavan Yap, Deon Stroud and freshman Robert Vaihola. Yap had three in just 5 minutes, Stroud had two in 4 minutes and Vaihola two in 2 minutes. …
▪ The free throw miss by Hill at the end of regulation changed the final 10 seconds, but the Bulldogs were only 11 of 16 there (64.7%). Over the past 10 games, they had hit 72.5% at the line. …
▪ Robinson will go into the Mountain West Tournament averaging 26.3 points over his past four games with 9.0 rebounds and 3.3 assists. …
Up next: Fresno State vs. San Jose State
When: 4 p.m. Wednesday
Where: Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas
Streaming: Mountain West Network
Radio: Bulldog Sports Network (Paul Loeffler, Marc Q. Jones)
Find it fast: Fresno (AM 1340), Bakersfield (AM 970), Visalia (AM 1130), Modesto (FM 92.9), Stockton (AM 1280), Bulldogs app, iHeartMedia app
The records: Fresno State (18-12, 8-9 in the MW), San Jose State (8-22, 1-17)
The Spartans: San Jose State ended its regular season with a 75-52 loss to Utah State on Saturday, its third loss in a row since it recorded its first Mountain West win Feb. 20 against New Mexico. The Spartans are the No. 11 seed at the conference tournament and the Bulldogs the No. 6 seed. San Jose State was no match for the Bulldogs in their two matchups. Fresno State won 79-59 at the Save Mart Center and 73-43 at the Event Center in San Jose. The Bulldogs hit 55.2% of their shots in the two victories, with Orlando Robinson averaging 24.5 points, 8.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists.