ROCKLIN, Calif. – Ten days without basketball have come to an end as the Warriors made their return to action Thursday night. With one of the best up-and-coming teams in the country in town, Jessup was put to work, needing every second to secure a hard-fought 79-71 victory.
"I think UAV has an opportunity to be really good, and I think that they're going to be very tough in the CALPAC," said coach
Lance Von Vogt after the game. "It wouldn't surprise me if we saw them in the national tournament some way."
Battling to the wire with top-ten teams is becoming a trend for Thursday's opponent, the Antelope Valley Pioneers. In their previous outing, UAV lost by just one to No. 4 ranked Carroll College.
Foul trouble was an issue for both teams in this one. The echoing noise of a whistle was common as 48 combined fouls were called. Only one player managed to foul out, but early fouls all-around by Jessup's starting five forced Von Vogt to look to his bench early in this one.
Stepping up off the bench for a team-high 22 points was
Jordan Adams. Playing 26 minutes, Adams connected on 7-of-11 from the field, including four from distance.
"The strength of our team has always been our depth," said Von Vogt. "And when you see the box score tonight, you know that verifies that. Jordan came off the bench, did a great job, and hit some big shots. Myles got into foul trouble early and had to sit most of the first half, and that created some more minutes for the bench. It's next, the next-man-up mentality, and when our backs against the wall, we make plays to win the game."
Indeed the Warriors did make plays to win the game. In a narrow battle all the way through, the Warriors grabbed a late lead off a three-point-play from
Tarren Storey-Way with 4:18 to go. It was a welcome home outing for Storey-Way as he was playing in his first home game of the season.
Storey-Way shined again, hitting a 3-pointer with three minutes to go, pushing Jessup ahead by four. The Pioneers would never retake the lead.
Thursday's contest featured 18 lead changes and nine ties, as it took the final four minutes for a team to seemingly pull away. The Warriors' largest lead of the night, eight, came with 33 seconds remaining in regulation.
It wasn't pretty, but the Warriors found a way to win, moving their record to 15-1 on the season.
"We found a way to win," added Von Vogt. "And it's always a good sign when you don't have your best stuff. Hats off to UAV. They were one of the toughest teams we played this year. Just, you know, ferocious on the boards and first to the floor, and I thought that UAV did a great job of playing to their strengths."
In the rebounding battle, Antelope Valley won by a commanding margin of 54-32. 25 of their boards came on the offensive end, compared to just six by the Warriors.
Charlie Garrison led all players with ten.
Behind Adams, four other Warriors closed the night in double-figures.
Cashemin Williams scored 14, while
Tim Strijaous added 13.
Jayden DeJoseph and Storey-Way added 12 and 11, respectively.
Jessup is now just one non-conference win away from a perfect season outside the GSAC. It's a mark never done before in the Von Vogt era.
"Right now, we're 11-0 in non-conference, and we have an opportunity to have a clean slate in non-conference, which hasn't been done here, to my knowledge. So we're looking to do something that hasn't been done before, and our whole focus is on Simpson University."
The Warriors will be in Redding this Saturday, New Year's Day, to take on Simpson University. After that, Jessup will travel down to LA for GSAC basketball at Westmont and The Master's.
***
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) and @JessupAthletics (Twitter & Instagram).
