SAN JOSE, Calif. – Omari Moore tallied 14 points, nine rebounds and three blocked shots, and San Jose State held Georgia Southern to 27 percent shooting to post a 63-48 men's basketball victory over the Eagles in the season opener for both teams Tuesday night in the Provident Credit Union Event Center.
Eagles of the Game
Andrei Savrasov led Georgia Southern with 14 points on 6 of 12 shooting and corralled six rebounds.
Tai Strickland finished with 11 points and five rebounds, while
Jalen Finch collected 10 points and made all six of his free-throw attempts.
Key Moments
The Eagles started the game 3 for 21 from the field, and San Jose State used a 16-3 run to open a 13-point lead with 3:52 left in the first frame. An and-1 by Finch made the margin nine points at the half, but the Spartans outscored the Eagles 10-5 in the first 4:23 of the second period, opening a 41-27 cushion on a Sage Tolbert layup.
The Spartans began the second half 9 of 11 from the field, and Moore capped an 8-0 San Jose State run with a dunk for a 54-33 advantage, the largest of the game, midway through the frame.
Strickland scored seven straight points as the Eagles used an 8-0 run to trim the margin to 58-48 on a steal and run-out layup by Savrasov with 1:49 to go. The Spartans beat the press and fed Tolbert for a dunk, Moore blocked a shot at the other end and Tibet Gorener nailed a 3-pointer from the corner to push the lead to 15 with 1:13 remaining.
Stats and Notes
- The Eagles made all 14 of their free-throw attempts.
- Georgia Southern fell to 34-17 in season openers and 3-13 in season openers on the road in the Division I era.
- It was the first meeting on the hardwood between the schools.
- The Eagles have never defeated an opponent from the Mountain West.
- The Spartans have won their last seven season openers.
Quotables from coach Brian Burg
"Offensively, we didn't have any poise, any discipline and as a result, we didn't play the way we wanted to, and then we let our offense really affect our defense. We allowed San Jose State to shoot 58 percent in the second half. Credit to San Jose State, but we didn't guard the ball well and guys were able to get all the way downhill, right to the rim."
"We have a 48-hour turnaround, so we need to get back to the hotel and have a chance to regroup, go through the film and then put our game plan together for Thursday. We have a lot of work to do tonight, and we'll focus on getting better tomorrow."
Next up
The Eagles travel to Santa Clara for a 10 p.m. ET contest Thursday before returning to Statesboro for their home opener against Trinity Baptist Saturday at 7 p.m.
