DICKSON’S 19 POINTS LEADS MEN’S BASKETBALL TO 64-63 VICTORY OVER IDAHO STATE

12/19/2009

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Freshman John Dickson scored a season-high 19 points on his 19th birthday, and Sacramento State shot 6-of-7 from the free throw line during the final 30 seconds to preserve a 64-63 win over Idaho State in a Big Sky Conference men’s basketball game Saturday evening at the Nest.

In a game where neither team led by more than seven points during the entire way, Sacramento State used a 6-0 run over a 44-second span late in the second half to take a five-point lead (50-45) with 5:32 remaining. The Hornets never trailed the rest of the way. During the run, Antonio Flaggs scored four of his 10 points, and Dickson added a layup.

After both teams exchanged buckets over the next series of possessions, a Dickson three-pointer put Sacramento State back up five points (58-53) with 41 seconds remaining. However, Idaho State immediately responded with a three-point play by Broderick Gilchrest to draw within two points (58-56) with 36 seconds left. At that point, the Bengals began fouling, and the first Hornet they fouled was senior Mike Marcial who calmly knocked down both free throws to put the Hornets up four points with 30 seconds left.

Hornet senior Domineek Daniel then blocked a three-point look from Sherrod Baldwin on the other end of the floor, but Dickson, who grabbed the rebound, missed the front end of a 1-and-1 free throw situation (20 seconds left) to give Idaho State new life. Gilchrest then converted a driving layup with 13 seconds left to pull within two points (60-58) before Hornet junior Sultan Toles-Bey was fouled and sunk both free throws with nine seconds left. Again, Gilchrest, who scored the Bengals’ final 10 points, converted on a layup with five seconds remaining to get Idaho State within, 62-60.

Daniel, who had entered the game 10-of-20 from the free throw line, was then fouled with 5.3 seconds left and converted both free throws to ice the game. Gilchrest hit a three-pointer at the buzzer to provide the final score of 64-63.

With the victory, Sacramento State snapped a three-game losing streak and improved to 5-7 overall and 1-1 in the Big Sky. The Hornets already have three more wins than all of last season (2-27) and have matched their conference victory output from a season ago (1-15). In addition, the Hornets were able to win tonight’s game despite the team’s third-leading scorer (senior forward Michael Selling) missing the game with a severe case of the flu. Tonight marked the first of a season-high tying three-game homestand that will include games against William Jessup (Dec. 21) and Loyola Marymount (Dec. 27).

With the loss, Idaho State, which fell by just six points at USC last week, dropped to 2-9 overall and 0-1 in the Big Sky.
Sacramento State, which overcame a 29-24 halftime deficit, finished the game shooting 44.2 percent (23-52) from the field, 30.0 percent (6-20) from the three-point line and 60.0 percent (12-20) from the charity stripe. That included the Hornets shooting 50.0 percent (13-26) from the field in a second half that saw the team outscore Idaho State, 40-34.

“I thought the win was good for a number of reasons, especially the way our guys bounced back in the second half,” Sacramento State second-year head coach Brian Katz said. “I thought we were a little inept against their trapping defense in the first half, but we made some adjustments at halftime, and the team went from tentative to tenacious in the final 20 minutes.”

Four players scored in double figures for Sacramento State, led by Dickson’s 19 points on 8-of-14 shooting from the field. Eleven of those 19 points came in the second half, including the big three-pointer with 41 seconds to play. Joining Dickson in double figures for the Hornets were senior Antonio Flaggs (10 points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals), senior center Justin Eller (10 points, game-high 10 rebounds) and Toles-Bey (10 points, six assists and one steal). All five Hornet starters (Dickson, Eller, Marcial, Toles-Bey and Flaggs) played at least 31 minutes. The double-double for Eller was his first of the season and fifth of his career.

Marcial added eight points, five assists, three rebounds and three steals in 35 minutes, and Daniel had seven points, two assists and two steals while playing seven active minutes. The five starters and Daniel combined to score all 64 of the Hornets’ points.

Gilchrest led Idaho State with 25 points on 10-of-18 shooting from the floor and 4-of-9 from beyond the arc. Amorrow Morgan added 17 points as he and Gilchrest combined for 42 of the team’s 63 points. The Bengals finished the game shooting 39.7 percent (23-58) from the field, 23.8 percent (5-21) from the three-point line and 70.6 percent (12-17) from the free throw line.

Beginning tonight, Sacramento State will play three home games in a span of nine days as the Hornets return to action on Monday, Dec. 21, when the team hosts William Jessup (NAIA squad from Rocklin) at 7:35 p.m. The game is the second of a doubleheader that will see the Hornet women taking on the Academy of Art at 5:05 p.m. Sacramento State concludes the homestand with a game against Loyola Marymount on Sunday, Dec. 27, at 1:05 p.m.