FRESNO STATE (7-9, 0-3 MW) VS. SAN JOSE STATE (8-9, 1-3 MW)
Jan. 16, 2023 | 7 p.m. PT | MWN | Save Mart Center | Fresno, Calif.
MEDIA COVERAGE
Stream: Mountain West Network / Radio: Bulldog Sports Network (BSN)
Play-by-Play: Paul Loeffler • Analyst: Marc Q. Jones • Sideline: Taylor Martinez
Stream: Mountain West Network
Live Stats: Bulldogslive.com
X (Twitter): @FresnoStateMBB
Tickets: Bulldog Ticket Office
FRESNO, Calif. — Fresno State returns home to host San Jose State on Tuesday night, the 175th meeting against the Spartans.
Tipoff at the Save Mart Center is scheduled for 7 p.m. PT. The game will stream live on the Mountain West Network.
QUICK LOOK
The Bulldogs have won 13 straight games at the Save Mart Center in the series with the Spartans.
Fresno State is coming off its second defeat at the buzzer this season. Until this year, the 'Dogs hadn't lost on a buzzer-beater since 2012.
For the fourth game in the last six, Isaiah Pope led the Bulldogs in scoring, posting 15 points at Wyoming. The senior is averaging a team-best 12.3 points per game since Dec. 18.
Isaiah Hill continues to lead Fresno State in scoring (12.1 ppg) and assists (5.4 apg) on the year. The point guard ranks No. 32 nationally in assists per game, sixth in the MW.
Transfer Xavier DuSell is second on the team in scoring at 9.9 points per game. The senior leads the 'Dogs in 3-point percentage, connecting at 41.7 percent clip (40-of-96). He sits second in the MW in 3-pointers made per game (2.5) and 3-point percentage. The sharpshooter ranks No. 31 in the NCAA in 3-point percentage.
Enoch Boakye (8.0) ranks No. 4 in the MW in rebounding per game.
With seven newcomers to the squad, that group has stepped in quickly to help complement the returners in the scoring column. Newcomers have accounted for 51.0 percent of the scoring thus far.
Fresno State ranks fourth in the Mountain West in fast break points (11.8) and fifth in field goal percentage (46.9%).
Depth has come in handy thus far as the Bulldogs' bench is averaging 22.1 points per game, second in the MW. The bench has accounted for 30 or more points in four contests.
ABOUT THE MATCHUP
Fresno State is 96-78 all-time against San Jose State with 57 of those wins coming in Fresno.
The Bulldogs have won 12 of the last 13 meetings dating back to 2017.
Since joining the Mountain West, Fresno State is 17-3 against the Spartans.
GAINING STEAM
With 31 points through the first 10 games of the season, Isaiah Pope has begun to find his footing after being hampered by injury early in the season. The fifth-year senior has scored 74 points in his last six games (12.3 ppg).
Pope has led the Bulldogs in scoring in four of the last six games.
21 of Pope's points have come at the free-throw line as he's gone 21-of-29 from the stripe during the stretch.
CONNECTING FROM DEEP
Shoot from outside. That's what was expected and what Wyoming transfer Xavier DuSell has brought to Fresno State. With a team-high 40 made 3-pointers through 16 games, DuSell is above the 2.0 per game he made in his 86 games at Wyoming.
DuSell is shooting a team-high 41.7 percent from 3, 31st in the NCAA, while ranking No. 2 in the MW in made 3's per game (2.5).
Against Pacific, he matched his career high with six made 3's, doing so on nine attempts. It was the fifth time he has made six 3-pointers in a game.
DuSell has shot at least 50 percent from beyond the arc in nine of 16 games.
NEWCOMER IMPACT
With seven additions this season, the group has picked up the loss of production from a year ago. Through 16 games, the group has accounted for 51.0 percent of the team's scoring.
Three of the team's top six scorers were new to Fresno State in the summer, and six of the team's top nine contributors were new additions.
70 IS THE MAGIC NUMBER
70 points. Through 16 games, 70 has been the number that the Bulldogs' offense is looking for. All but one of Fresno State's wins have come when scoring more than 70 points. When they don't hit that mark, it has all but once resulted in a loss for the 'Dogs.
The Bulldogs are 6-1 when reaching 70 points.
NOT USUALLY CLOSE
Whether at home or on the road, Fresno State games for the most part haven't been close. 10 of the Bulldogs' 16 games have been separated by double digits.
Five games have been separated by more than 20 points (2-3).
Fresno State is 3-3 in the two games separated by five points or less. Four of those have come in the last seven games.
Prior to this season, Fresno State had not lost on a buzzer-beater since 2012. The Bulldogs have dropped two games this year at the buzzer (Portland State, at Wyoming).