Charles Garcia (Los Angeles, Calif.) led SeattleU with 16 points, but shot only 5-of-14 from the field, plus he picked up five rebounds, two assists, two blocked shots, and a steal. Chris Gweth (Beaverton, Ore.) finished with 14 points and a team-high eight rebounds, while Cervante Burrell (Sacramento, Calif.) earned 11 points and three rebounds. Garrett Lever (Phoenix, Ariz.) contributed in several ways with six points, six rebounds, including five offensive boards, and three assists.
Sacramento State (7-10) was able to capture the momentum coming out of halftime, scoring eight unanswered points midway in the second half, capped by back-to-back three pointers by Sultan Toles-Bey and Duro Bjegovic, to pull ahead, 50-42. The Hornets hit 17-of-26 field goal attempts after halftime, finishing at 52.9 percent field goal shooting (27-of-51) for the game.
Down 55-48, Seattle University mounted a comeback, as Gweth hit a three-pointer and Garcia scored five points to pull the Redhawks into a 58-58 tie. However, the Hornets put together a 13-4 run over a four-minute span to put the game away, snapping their three-game losing streak in the process.
Six players scored in double figures for Sacramento State, led by Antonio Flaggs and Bjegovic, who came off the bench and combined to shoot 11-of-16 from the field and 8-of-9 from the free throw line to score 16 points each. Toles-Bey scored 13 points, all in the second half, while Domineek Daniel collected 11 points, nine rebounds, two assists, three blocked shots, and four steals. Justin Eller also scored 11 points, and John Dickson contributed 10 points to the winning effort.
The first half went back and forth with four ties and six lead changes, the final one of the half coming when Burrell drove the lane and floated in a shot to give SeattleU an 18-17 lead with 7:25 remaining on the clock. Thanks in part to nine first-half points by Gweth, the Redhawks extended their lead to as much as six points before going into the locker room at halftime up by four, 32-28.
For the game, Seattle University shot 40.0 percent (24-of-60) from the field, including 4-of-20 from behind the three-point line, and 78.9 percent (15-of-19) from the free throw line. The Redhawks did have a slight rebounding edge (33-32), but committed 20 turnovers while dishing out only eight assists.
Seattle University (7-10) heads to the southern part of the Golden State for a contest at Cal State Northridge Monday, Jan. 11, beginning at 8 p.m. The Redhawks return home and welcome Utah Valley to KeyArena at Seattle Center next Saturday, Jan. 16, for a 7:10 p.m. tip-off.