SAN FRANCISCO – Sophomore Robert Hayes (San Diego, California, St. Augustine) scored a game-high 22 points to lead the San Francisco State men's basketball team to a 76-63 victory over UC Santa Cruz in the regular-season opener Wednesday night in the Main Gymnasium. The Gators also received 19 points from senior Alex Thomas (Vallejo, California, Hogan, Dominican University) to move to 1-0 on the young season, while the Banana Slugs remain winless at 0-3 overall.

“We were ready to play and got off to a great start,”said SF State head coach Bill Treseler. “But you have to have a killer instinct, and we never put UC Santa Cruz away. We are going to have to improve in nearly every area to be competitive in our upcoming games.”

The Gators jumped out to a quick 5-0 advantage after a Hayes jumper and a three-pointer by Thomas.  The lead would eventually swell to 18-4 on senior Ryan Wessels (Napa, California, Vintage, Napa Valley College)  layup and consecutive triples by Hayes.  Soon thereafter, SF State enjoyed its biggest cushion of the first half at 30-9 on a three-point play by Thomas at the 8:52 mark.

UC Santa Cruz regrouped at this juncture, fashioning an 18-4 run of its own to pull within 34-27 following a pair of free throws by Ryan Matsuoka, who finished with a team-high 17 points.  However, the Banana Slugs could draw no closer as the Gators outscored the visitors, 10-3, the rest of the half to take a 44-30 lead into the locker room.

Despite being outscored 33-32 in the second half, SF State was able keep UC Santa Cruz in its rear view mirror, maintaining a double-digit cushion for the balance of the period until UCSC's Niel Brennan sank a pair of free throws to make the score, 70-61, with just 1:49 remaining on the clock.

The Gators were outshot in field-goal percentage (58.1-46.3 percent), but held a 29-16 advantage in turnovers, with Thomas and sophomore Phoenix O'Rourke (San Mateo, California, Junipero Serra) contributing four steals apiece.  SF State  was able to capitalize on those miscues, outscoring the Banana Slugs, 38-17, on points off turnovers.

The Gators return to the court this weekend when they compete in the Ron Logsdon Basketball Classic in Rohnert Park, Calif.  SF State will square off against Menlo College on Friday, Nov. 21, before battling Northwest Nazarene on Saturday, Nov. 22.  Both games are scheduled to tip off at 5:30 p.m. on the campus of Sonoma State.