Saturday, February 29
Fresno, CA
4:00 PM PT
Fresno State
11-18, 7-11MW
63
vs
55
Wyoming
7-23, 2-16MW
1
2
F
Wyoming
22
33
55
Fresno State
21
42
63
Photo by: Keith Kountz
’Dogs defeat Cowboys in home finale
2/29/2020 9:15:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Fresno State finished strong down the stretch to beat Wyoming on Senior Night. The Bulldogs will open the MW Championships on Wednesday in Las Vegas at the Thomas & Mack Center.
FRESNO, Calif. – The Fresno State men's basketball team defeated the Wyoming Cowboys 63-55 on Saturday at the Save Mart Center.
Fresno State (11-18, 7-11 Mountain West) will be the No. 8 seed for the 2020 Mountain West Championships and open the single-elimination tournament in the first round against the No. 9-seeded Air Force Falcons on Wednesday at 12 p.m. PT in Las Vegas at the Thomas & Mack Center. Fresno State will need to win four games in four days to earn the league's automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.
On Saturday, Fresno State freshmen Niven Hart and Jarred Hyder each had a team-best 11 points, while senior guard New Williams had 10 points with five assists to complete the regular season sweep of the Cowboys.
Senior forward Nate Grimes added nine points with a game-best 14 rebounds in the eight-point win to rise into sole possession of sixth on the Bulldogs' all-time rebounding list.
Wyoming (7-23, 2-16 Mountain West) was led by TJ Taylor, who had a game-high 19 points for the Cowboys.
How it happened: Fresno State was down by as many eight points in the first half before the Bulldogs used an 8-0 run to tie the score at 15-15 on a pair of free throws by Hart.
Fresno State and Wyoming traded scores in the final three minutes of the first half, which saw the 'Dogs trail the Cowboys 22-21 at the break when Maldonado made a 3-pointer in the closing seconds before halftime.
Wyoming opened the second half with a 9-2 run to once again move in front by eight – this time at 31-23 – but the Bulldogs countered with a 15-7 stretch, which tied the tilt at 38-38.
Fresno State was later up 47-41 and the Bulldogs led the final 10 minutes of the game. Fresno State's bench outscored Wyoming 19-0 and the Bulldogs outrebounded the Cowboys 40-30 in the 40-minute regular season finale.
Quotes:
Justin Hutson, Fresno State Head Coach
On New Williams' clutch three…
"We know New is very good at coming off that baseline. That wasn't the first time him he came off that baseline in that same exact spot that he's hit that shot for us. So, he works on it, he's confident, and I knew if he didn't have that shot he would dump it in and he was going to get in the paint and get somebody something."
On upcoming tournament play…
"We've played well enough to beat anyone in the conference, and we've played well enough to lose to anyone in the conference. That's the truth if you've been following us. We're positive people and we have gotten better. We've played a lot of close games on the road as of late to really good teams, losing by one possession. We do know that whoever our first opponent is, they're going to be a tough one for us and we've got to be ready to play."
New Williams, Fresno State senior guard
On hitting the clutch three…
"I know Coach (Hutson) believes in me and he knows that I believe in me. So when they made that call, if I had it, I was going to shoot it and if I didn't, I would have thrown it in. I'm always embodying his next play mentality on my shooting as well. It's always next shot for me if the last shot went it or didn't go in, I'm always onto the next shot and I'm always ready for the opportunity."
Player Notes:
Nate Grimes - 9 points, 14 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block
"Fresno State Athletics: The Pride of the Valley '' – The Bulldog Foundation creates championship experiences for Fresno State student-athletes as they strive for excellence in the classroom, in competition, and in life. To become a BDF member, please visit bulldogfoundation.org.
Fresno State (11-18, 7-11 Mountain West) will be the No. 8 seed for the 2020 Mountain West Championships and open the single-elimination tournament in the first round against the No. 9-seeded Air Force Falcons on Wednesday at 12 p.m. PT in Las Vegas at the Thomas & Mack Center. Fresno State will need to win four games in four days to earn the league's automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.
On Saturday, Fresno State freshmen Niven Hart and Jarred Hyder each had a team-best 11 points, while senior guard New Williams had 10 points with five assists to complete the regular season sweep of the Cowboys.
Senior forward Nate Grimes added nine points with a game-best 14 rebounds in the eight-point win to rise into sole possession of sixth on the Bulldogs' all-time rebounding list.
Wyoming (7-23, 2-16 Mountain West) was led by TJ Taylor, who had a game-high 19 points for the Cowboys.
How it happened: Fresno State was down by as many eight points in the first half before the Bulldogs used an 8-0 run to tie the score at 15-15 on a pair of free throws by Hart.
Fresno State and Wyoming traded scores in the final three minutes of the first half, which saw the 'Dogs trail the Cowboys 22-21 at the break when Maldonado made a 3-pointer in the closing seconds before halftime.
Wyoming opened the second half with a 9-2 run to once again move in front by eight – this time at 31-23 – but the Bulldogs countered with a 15-7 stretch, which tied the tilt at 38-38.
Fresno State was later up 47-41 and the Bulldogs led the final 10 minutes of the game. Fresno State's bench outscored Wyoming 19-0 and the Bulldogs outrebounded the Cowboys 40-30 in the 40-minute regular season finale.
Quotes:
Justin Hutson, Fresno State Head Coach
On New Williams' clutch three…
"We know New is very good at coming off that baseline. That wasn't the first time him he came off that baseline in that same exact spot that he's hit that shot for us. So, he works on it, he's confident, and I knew if he didn't have that shot he would dump it in and he was going to get in the paint and get somebody something."
On upcoming tournament play…
"We've played well enough to beat anyone in the conference, and we've played well enough to lose to anyone in the conference. That's the truth if you've been following us. We're positive people and we have gotten better. We've played a lot of close games on the road as of late to really good teams, losing by one possession. We do know that whoever our first opponent is, they're going to be a tough one for us and we've got to be ready to play."
New Williams, Fresno State senior guard
On hitting the clutch three…
"I know Coach (Hutson) believes in me and he knows that I believe in me. So when they made that call, if I had it, I was going to shoot it and if I didn't, I would have thrown it in. I'm always embodying his next play mentality on my shooting as well. It's always next shot for me if the last shot went it or didn't go in, I'm always onto the next shot and I'm always ready for the opportunity."
Player Notes:
Nate Grimes - 9 points, 14 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block
- Recorded at least 10 rebounds for the 34th time in his career (16th time this season)
- Fresno State has now won nine of its last 12 meetings with Wyoming, including five of the last six in the series. Fresno State leads the all-time series 20-11, including a 11-5 record against the Cowboys since the Bulldogs joined the MW in 2012. Fresno State is 4-0 against Wyoming in Hutson's tenure.
- Fresno State is now 188-85 (68.9 percent) all-time at the Save Mart Center.
- Fresno State is now 82-30 overall at home since the start of the 2013-14 season, including a 20-11 home record in head coach Justin Hutson's tenure.
"Fresno State Athletics: The Pride of the Valley '' – The Bulldog Foundation creates championship experiences for Fresno State student-athletes as they strive for excellence in the classroom, in competition, and in life. To become a BDF member, please visit bulldogfoundation.org.
Team Stats
WYO
FS
FG%
.358
.388
3FG%
.333
.364
FT%
.636
.708
RB
30
40
TO
11
12
STL
6
4
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
11
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
4
Pts
10
FGM
1
3FGM
1
FTM
7
Pts
9
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's BasketballG
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