ROCKLIN, Calif. – Coming off the most successful season in school history, culminating with a trip to the Sweet Sixteen, the Warriors opened a new season on Monday as they played host to the Pacific Union College Pioneers. It took a while for the Warriors to shake the rust off, as the game was sent to the closing stretches before the Warriors were able to start the year with a 76-72 victory.

Nothing came easy for the Warriors on Monday. With a three-point advantage in the closing thirty seconds of the game, an attempt to run some clock off before the Pioneers were forced to foul turned into a disaster, as Pacific Union's press defense forced Jessup to step out of bounds, giving the Pioneers a shot at tying the game with 15-seconds remaining.

The press was nothing new, in fact, it occurred all game as Jessup consistently brought the ball into the front court with little time to spare before a 10-second violation. Jessup committed 16 turnovers on Monday, nine of which were followed with a steal.

Tight defense by Pacific Union not only cut off Jessup's passing lanes, but it also caused Jessup to get to line on several opportunities, as in both halves the Warriors entered the bonus with over seven minutes remaining in the half. In three one-and-one free-throw situations in the first half, Jessup just went 1-of-4 at the line, missing the front end on their final two chances.

"Well let's put it this way, it's a turnover," said head coach Lance Von Vogt game when asked about missing the front end of a one-and-one. "We're definitely going to work on that. I think that as the guys get settled in, we've got a good enough shooting team that we ought to be mid-70s (free throw percentage) as a team. That will be our goal."

Neither team ever pulled away from one another Monday, with Jessup taking just a three-point advantage into the ten-minute mark of the first half. After the Warriors were able to stretch the lead to five, a 5-0 run by Pacific Union knotted the game even once again with five minutes remaining in the half.

Jessup closed the first half on a 7-0 run, aided by four straight points and a steal from freshman Wilson LaShells (Danville, CA), sending the Warriors into the locker room with a 37-32 advantage. LaShells finished his collegiate debut with 6-points.

Jayson Marquez proved to be a thorn in the side of Jessup, as the junior guard came off the bench for 27-minutes, and hit on four-of-five from beyond the arc for 18-points. Devon Pinnock led all scorers with 19, as the scrappy guard connected time-after-time from the paint, shooting 57-percent (8-for-14) from the field.

"We identified (Marquez) as a shooter with our team in the scout report, and he proved that he was," added Von Vogt on Marquez. "We have to have a hand in his face. We cannot give up the three-point line like that. That's something we'll be working on this week."

With the game closing down to the final stretches, Jessup seemed to have gained a big shot of momentum when freshman Brandon Linsey (Tyrone, GA) connected on a contested layup to push the lead to four. However, a Marquez three on the ensuing Pioneer possession trimmed the game back to within one point.

The Warriors got the lead back up to three with just under 50-seconds remaining, as after a miss senior Elijah Lewis (Atlanta, GA) leaped high to tip in the rebound. After the Jessup turnover with 15-seconds left, a missed 3-pointer caused the Pioneers to have to foul, sending junior Christian Jones (Newport News, VA) to the line where he went 1-of-2 with 0.2 seconds left in the game, securing a four point Jessup victory.

After redshirting the 2015-16 season, Lewis returned to the floor with 11-points, shooting 4-of-6 from the field. Senior Chris Murry (Fremont, CA) also returned off a redshirt season, as the three-point specialist added a team high 14-points on 4-of-9 from long range. Lindsey added 13 off the bench in his collegiate debut.

"They're huge, they're a big part of what we do," complemented Von Vogt on having both Murry and Lewis back on the court. "They serve as captains on this team, and so to have them back out there was great."

Jessup shot 47-percent (26-for-55) from the field Monday. The Pioneers countered with a 45-percent (28-for-62) performance. Neither team excelled from the charity strike, with Jessup turning in a 60-percent (17-for-28) showing, and Pacific Union shooting 8-of-14 (57-percent).

With one game under their belt, the Warriors sit at 1-0 on the young season and will look to add their second and third wins this weekend as they head to Vallejo for the Frank Dye Invitational. Jessup will take on California Maritime on Friday at 7:30 p.m.
 
William Jessup University is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), and the Golden State Athletic Conference (GSAC). For additional information regarding Jessup Athletics, visit www.jessupathletics.com; visit www.jessup.edu for more information on William Jessup University. Follow Jessup Athletics on social media: William Jessup University Athletics (Facebook), @WJUSports (Twitter), and @JessupAthletics (Instagram, and Snapchat).