Fresno State
Oregon State
Bulldogs End Road Trip
12/23/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
CORVALLIS, Ore.-- The Fresno State men's basketball team ran into a rabid pack of Beavers and dropped its holiday road trip finale by the score 73-63 despite four Bulldogs in double figures on Wednesday night in Gill Coliseum.
"We did a lot of things better tonight, but made too many mistakes to win," head coach Steve Cleveland said. "We have four straight home games and need to take care of business at home. We have the chance to have a special season and our focus needs to remain on doing everything we can to defend our home floor."
Sophomore Paul George led the Bulldogs with 15 points and nine rebounds while senior Sylvester Seay and sophomore Steven Shepp each added 13 points apiece. Freshman center Greg Smith, the fourth Bulldog in double figures, scored 12 points with a career-high six converted free throws.
The Bulldogs faced a constantly changing zone, between the 1-3-1 and 2-3 sets of Oregon State head coach Craig Robinson's design, which disrupted passing lanes throughout the games.
Calvin Haynes, the Beavers' leading scorer on the evening by a tying a career-high with 25 points, found his stroke early and often with a season-high five 3-pointers on 8 of 12 shooting.
Fresno State (6-7) opened the scoring on a Smith lay-up, but after George added another lay-up to give the Bulldogs a 4-2 lead with 18:06 to play in the first, the Beavers dictated the pace of the game and its 17-7 run gave the home a 19-11 advantage midway through the first half.
At halftime, George and Seay led the Dogs with nine points each as the Bulldogs trailed 40-29.
The recharged Bulldogs later fell behind by 18 points, 54-36, with 12:54 to play before mounting a spirited comeback bid that ended with Ladd lay-up as time nearly expired for the final tally in favor of the Beavers, 73-65.
The game ended a series of four games in seven days. The Dogs return to Save Mart Center for a four-game homestand that starts Monday night when old WAC foe returns to the Fresno for a 7 p.m. contest.
"We Are Your Team" - Witness the `Dogs as they host the Boise State Broncos on Saturday, January 2, at the Save Mart Center. It's a double-header when the women's team faces Cal State Bakersfield at 5 p.m. Tickets can be purchased through the Save Mart Center Box Office, by calling 559-485-TIXS or through Ticketmaster.com. For more information visit GoBulldogs.com.
