Fresno State
Norfolk State
Fresno State Powers Past Norfolk State, 89-70
12/19/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 20, 2005
FRESNO, Calif. (AP) - Ja'Vance Coleman scored a game-high 25 points and Quinton Hosley added 23 as Fresno State broke a two-game skid to beat Norfolk State, 89-70, on Monday night.
, Four Bulldogs tallied double figure games and Fresno State improved to 3-0 at home with its victory over NSU. Coleman posted his second straight 20-point game and Hosley collected his fifth straight double-double as the duo have each recorded 20-point games in the same game for the third time on the season.Also collecting double figures tonight was Dwight O'Neil (10) and Donovan Morris (12). Hector Hernandez chipped in nine points to go along with seven rebounds while Kevin Bell added six points, eight assists, two blocks and three steals.
The Bulldogs (5-3) used a full-court man defense to rattle the Spartans, coming up with 14 steals and forcing 23 turnovers. Hosley had four of the steals and 11 rebounds.
Tony Murphy scored 24 points to lead Norfolk State.
The Spartans stayed close for a while by dominating the boards to get second chances. They outrebounded Fresno State 49-33 and had 20 offensive rebounds.
Norfolk State cut the lead to 54-46 with 14:21 in the second half when Tony Murphy drove in for a layup, but the Bulldogs pulled away.
Coleman scored 15 points in the second half. He made four 3-pointers and added five assists as he posted his fourth 20-point game of the season and 16th of his career. Going 9-for-17 from the field, he also had five assists and three steals to help Fresno State improve to 3-0 at home.
The Bulldogs built a 38-31 halftime lead -- their second halftime lead of the year. Overcoming a rocky start by missing 14 of their first 19 shots, Fresno State used its quickness on the floor to create 23 turnovers, in which the Bulldogs scored 26 points, as well tallying 14 steals, its sixth game of the year in which the 'Dogs have notched 10 or more in a game.
For the second straight game, all 10 Bulldogs saw time on the court as the bench combined for 16 points.
The 51 points scored in the second half was a new Save Mart Center record as the former record was 49. In addition, Fresno State tied the arena record for most points scored (89) as it went on to collect its largest margin of victory (+19) to date. Still further, the 89 points scored tonight was the most points tallied in a win this season as the Bulldogs now have record four 80-point victories out of five of their wins thus far.
"We played hard, competed hard and did what we needed to do to win tonight," Fresno State head coach Steve Cleveland said. "We're constantly focusing on becoming a better team and looking at every chance as an opportunity to improve.
"Norfolk State was relentless tonight with their second chance points and work on the boards," Cleveland stated. "We did a better job in the last seven to eight minutes after we figured out how to handle them. We'll continue to work on our half court game and continue to emphasize the importance of making good decisions on the court.
"It was nice to come back home and get a win, especially after the last two losses we had to take on the chin," Cleveland added. "We'll get better and as each player improves and learns we're going to see a good basketball team."
Fresno State continues its five-game homestand on Friday when the Bulldogs host UC Santa Barbara at 7:00 p.m. Single game tickets can be purchased through Ticketmaster and the Save Mart Center box office. In addition, single-season tickets can be had through gobulldogs.com and the Bulldog Ticket Office.
