Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
San Francisco State
Dogs Slam Down Gators in Opener Win
11/13/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
FRESNO, Calif. -- On Friday the 13th, the Fresno State men's basketball team secured a season-opening 65-59 victory over San Francisco State behind a huge debut by local freshman Greg Smith and a systematic shooting night by sophomore forward Paul George.
Smith, a 6-foot-10 native of Fresno, Calif., earned his first Bulldog double-double with 17 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks in front of his hometown crowd. On the night, he shot six for six from the field with a team-high four offensive rebounds. His presence in the paint helped spark the team down the stretch.
"I am very pleased with Greg's effort and execution tonight," Cleveland said after he improved to 5-0 in Bulldog season openers. "Greg's free throw shooting is much improved and he found a nice rhythm during the game. I give credit to San Francisco State for battling hard. We were able to establish ourselves in the second half and shot the ball better in those last 20 minutes."
George scored 19 points, including Fresno State's first eight points of the game, grabbed eight rebounds and swiped a team-high four steals. He also converted all 10 free throw attempts, a career-best, for a perfect tally from the charity stripe.
Sophomore combo guard Brandon Sperling capped a competitive first half with a jump shot that started a 14-0 Fresno State run and propelled the Bulldogs to a 43-32 lead with 16:09 left in the second half when George drained a smooth 3-pointer.
The Gators didn't go away, yet George and Smith combined on a critical play with two minutes remaining when George drove hard to the basket before passing to Smith, who finished the play with a one-handed slam dunk. A steal and two free throws by Sperling with 1:33 left pushed Fresno State's lead up to 63-57 to take final control of the game.
Sperling and senior Sylvester Seay both finished with eight points on the night. Sophomore Mychal Ladd led the team with five assists.
Marquel Hoskins paced the Gators with 18 points and eight assists. San Francisco State counted the game as an exhibition while Fresno State started their 32-game regular season in the battle of sister CSU schools.
Fresno State improved to 1-0 on the season. The Bulldogs have won their past nine home openers and this marks the sixth straight season the Dogs have started with a victory.
The Bulldogs hit the road for contests at Northern Arizona (Nov. 17) and Seattle University (Nov. 19) next week.
"We Are Your Team" - The Bulldogs will hit the road to challenge the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks on Tuesday, November 17, at 5:35 p.m. The game can be heard live on KMJ-580 AM. The team will continue their road trip on Thursday, November 19, when they head to Seattle University. The game will be broadcast on the Bulldog Sports Network at 7 p.m. (KAIL MY53 - Comcast Cable, Channel 13). For more information, be sure to visit GoBulldogs.com.
