’Dogs win big in Hutson’s debut back home in the Valley

Tuesday, November 6

Fresno, Calif.

7 p.m. PT

Fresno State

1-0

Alaska-Anchorage

0-0

Alaska-Anchorage

Fresno State

Photo by: Cary Edmondson-Fresno State

’Dogs win big in Hutson’s debut back home in the Valley

11/6/2018 10:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

Fresno State cruised to a 91-63 victory over Alaska-Anchorage in Valley native Justin Hutson’s first game as the Bulldogs’ head coach. Senior guard Braxton Huggins scored a game-high 23 points for the Bulldogs.

By: Stephen Trembley / Director of New Media

FRESNO, Calif. --- In a historic moment for the Fresno State men's basketball program, the Bulldogs opened the season and the Justin Hutson era with a 91-63 win over the Alaska-Anchorage Seawolves on Tuesday night inside the Save Mart Center.

Hutson, a native of Bakersfield, Calif., won his debut as the Bulldogs' head coach as senior guard Braxton Huggins scored a game-high 23 points to lead Fresno State to its 27th straight victory over a non-Division I opponent.

"Hopefully this style of play becomes contagious," said Hutson. "We have some guards who can get into the paint and make shots. It is something that we work on and talk about every day. I thought we were better in this game than we were the last at sharing."

How it happened:
Fresno State opened the game on a 8-2 run, sparked by 3-pointers from Deshon Taylor and Braxton Huggins. The Seawolves would make it a two point game 24-22 with 4:27 left in the first half, but the Bulldogs would respond with an 8-2 run to bring their lead back to nine points (39-30) with 2:01 left in the half. Taylor finished the half with two made free throws to give Fresno State a 41-32 lead at halftime. Huggins scored five 3-pointers in the first half for the Bulldogs, and totaled 19 points during the first 30 minutes of his Bulldog debut.

The Bulldogs pulled away with a 12-2 run, making it a 69-47 game with 8:52 left in the game. Johnny McWilliams gave the Bulldogs a lift in the second half, scoring a career-high 10 points through the second half. Fresno State would seal in the win with a late 7-0 run, to make it a 29-point game with 3:59 left.

Team Notes:

Fresno State has won 18 straight home openers, including all 15 in the Save Mart Center.
Fresno State is 77-19 all-time in home openers.
Fresno State is 71-25 all-time in season openers.
Fresno State has won 27 straight games against non-Division I opponents.
Seven different Bulldogs scored for Fresno State.
Four Bulldogs scored in double-digits.

Player Notes:

Braxton Huggins, Sr., Guard
Huggins scored a team-high 23 points … recorded five 3-pointers … logged three assists … grabbed two rebounds … had one steal.

New Williams, Jr., Guard
Williams scored a career-high 14 points … was 6-for-7 from the free throw line … scored in double-digits for the first time in his career … grabbed a career-high four rebounds … recorded a career-high three steals and two assists.

Deshon Taylor Sr., Guard
Taylor scored 11 points … dished a team-high six assists … had a team-high four steals … grabbed two rebounds … recorded one block.

Quotes
Justin Hutson, Fresno State head coach
On how well the team shared the ball…
"Hopefully it becomes contagious. We have some guards who can get into the paint and make shots. It is something that we work on and talk about every day. I thought we were better in this game than we were the last at sharing."

On Aguir Agau and Christian Gray…
"I am glad they got their feet wet and got out there. Christian (Gray) did a great job talking on defense, which is huge as an anchor back there. When we got the ball inside to him, he was very efficient. Aguir (Agau) is young but he is very athletic and you can tell that he has some good days ahead of him. We will keep working with him and help him get better."

On coaching his first official game as Fresno State head coach…
"It feels like home. I look up and I have a lot of family and friends that are here. Being from the Valley and having the Green V on my suit makes it feel like home. It is different though. Just like anybody else says, there is nothing like experience. Until you go through these things, you can never really adjust."

Braxton Huggins, Fresno State redshirt senior guard
On being being comfortable on the floor…
"Deshon did a really good job of finding me. The team did a really good job looking for me in transition. I give all the credit to them. They found me when I was open and they passed it to me and I just did what they wanted me to do with the ball. If I am open, I am going to shoot it. I aM going to play basketball. Like coach always says, 'play ball'."

On the turnaround point in the game…
"I didn't think it took us a while, we just had to feel each other out. It was the first game of the season so we had to get our rhythm and get our tempo. When we got it going in transition, I felt like it was a pretty good game. There was a lot of things that went on tonight like our offensive tempo and our second half defense."

Deshon Taylor, Fresno State senior guard
On having confidence in his teammates…
"Practicing against them and playing with them in practice shows me that they make shots all the time. If they are open, I am going to give it to them. It is better to get somebody else going before yourself, I like doing that."

Up next: Fresno State will play at TCU on Thursday, Nov. 15 at 6:00 p.m. PT in its first road game of the season. The game will be broadcasted on Fox Sports Southwest as well as 940 AM ESPN Radio.

"Just the Ticket to Build Our Community" – The Bulldog Scholarship Fund gives Bulldog alumni, fans and friends the opportunity to support Fresno State Athletics and the student-athletes who inspire them. For information about how you can support the Bulldog Scholarship Fund, please visit www.bulldogscholarshipfund.com or call 559-278-7160.