SAN FRANCISCO — The San Francisco State men's basketball team dropped its home opener, 88-76, to Western Oregon on the first night of the Gator Gobble inside the Main Gym at Don Nasser Family Plaza.
- The Gators (3-4) had four players in double digits but it wasn't enough against a very hot Western Oregon (4-0) team, which also had four players in double digits. WOU's Darius Lubom led all players with 20 points and was joined by three teammates (Jaylyn Richardson, Dalven Brushier, and Tyreek Price) with 17 points apiece.
- Linton Acliese III led SF State with 17 points. Jase Wickliffe added a season-high 12, Zane Paddon scored 11, and Sean Orr added a career-high 10 points.
- The Wolves shot 60.4 percent (32-of-53) from the field, including a scorching 53.3 percent (16-of-30) from deep.
- In the first game of the Gator Gobble, Stanislaus State edged Concordia (Ore.) 62-56.
The first half was a three-point exhibition as the two teams went a combined 17-of-32 (53.1 percent) from deep. The Gators trailed by a point around the 12-minute mark but used three threes by Paddon, Acliese III, and
Jordan Balser to swing the momentum to the home team. Western Oregon answered with a pair of Richardson threes and a long ball from Price. Wickliffe got in on the action for the Gators with a three of his own as well, and Acliese went inside for a layup to put the Gators back up by a point. However, the Wolves answered with back-to-back threes from Zach Baugher and Price that put WOU back up five.
Sean Orr found Balser under the hoop for a layup but the Wolves stayed in front with another Baugher three.
Sean Orr answered with a Gators three but Price and Richardson answered with two more Wolves field goals from long range. Lubom's steal and layup pushed the Wolves lead to 11. Orr laid one in to keep the deficit in single digits at the intermission.
The Wolves quickly pushed the lead to 13 in the second half. Down 10, Wickliffe sparked the Gators with a pair of free throws, an assist to Acliese, and an acrobatic three-point play in transition that cut the lead to five. At the 14-minute mark, the Gators cut the lead to four on a Sylvester dunk over Lubom but a pair of Wolves layups pushed the gap back to eight. At 10:42, the Gators drew an offensive foul and a technical foul was called on the Western Oregon bench. Balser knocked down both free throws to cut the lead back to six but a six-point Wolves run pushed the lead back to double figures. An Acliese block under the four-minute mark led to an Alex Manu jumper that pulled the Gators to within four, 76-72. The Gators got a defensive stop but couldn't convert and Cameron Cranston made them pay with a wide-open three from the top of the key, followed by Another Price three that pushed the deficit back to 10 with under a minute and a half to go.
On Saturday, November 30, the Gators will host Concordia (Ore.) at 7 p.m. in the final game of the Gator Gobble. Stanislaus State and Western Oregon will meet at 5 p.m. Both games will be streamed for free on the CCAA Network. Live stats will also be available at sfstategators.com.
