Alex Jones (Phoenix, Ariz.) led Seattle U with 21 points on 6-of-6 shooting from the field and 9-of-11 shooting from the free throw line, but fouled out halfway through the second half. Cervante Burrell (Sacramento, Calif.) contributed 12 points, four rebounds, two assists, and two steals, while Mark McLaughlin (Seattle, Wash.) also scored 12 points and Sterling Carter (Seattle, Wash.) added 10 points, five rebounds, and three assists.
A layup by Burrell gave Seattle U a 12-8 lead with 14:35 remaining in the first half, but San Jose State went on a 16-5 run over the next five minutes, with Justin Graham leading the way with seven points over that span. After back-to-back layups by Jones cut the Redhawk deficit to three at 24-21, the Spartans went on a 12-4 run, punctuated by consecutive three-pointers from Graham and Keith Shamburger, to pull ahead by 11, 36-25, with 4:18 remaining before halftime.
Shamburger scored the final five points of a Spartan 8-0 run that gave the visitors a 55-39 advantage five minutes into the second half. Taylor Stevens (Marysville, Wash.) hit a three-pointer to bring Seattle U within 12 at 59-47 midway through the second half, but San Jose State put the game away with 11 unanswered points over the next two minutes.
"They were tougher than us and outscrapped us tonight, and we could not guard #33 (Graham)," Seattle U head coach Cameron Dollar said. "My best one-on-one defender (Garrett Lever) was locked up with (Adrian) Oliver and did a pretty good job on him, but give Oliver credit for not forcing it and allowing Graham to have the night he did."
Graham scored 17 of his game-high 24 points in the first half, plus he earned four rebounds, four assists, and five steals in the game. Shamburger collected 22 points, six rebounds, two assists, two blocked shots, and three steals. Oliver, who came into the game as the nation's third-leading scorer at 25.4 points per game, finished with 13 points on 3-of-13 shooting from the field and 6-of-8 shooting from the free throw line.
As a team, Seattle University shot 37.7 percent (23-of-61) from the field, including 5-of-24 from behind the three-point line, and 79.2 percent (19-of-24) from the free throw line. Meanwhile, San Jose State shot 40.3 percent (27-of-67) from the field, including 7-of-17 from behind the three-point arc, and 73.5 percent (25-of-34) from the free throw line. The Spartans outrebounded the Redhawks, 49-33, with the visitors earning 19 offensive rebounds during the contest.
Seattle University (4-10) will head to the East Coast for the second time this season, flying to Charlottesville, Va., Monday in preparation for Wednesday's game against the University of Virginia. Game time is set for 7 p.m. local time (4 p.m. Pacific time), and the game will be broadcast on 710 ESPN Seattle, with Dave Grosby and Gary Hill, Jr., calling the action.