VALLEJO, Calif. – Jessup was back on the road Monday night as the season resumed with a trip to Vallejo to take on the Cal Maritime Keelhaulers. After Jessup entered the locker room on the losing end, a flip switched out of the break as a monstrous second half sent Jessup home with a 91-69 victory.
The 91-point night is the best offensive output in the four games under
Mark Darnall, and it's a 27-point improvement from their previous best scoring performance in regulation (64 vs. MSUN, Nov. 3). Wednesday also marks the Warriors first 90-point performance in regulation away from Warrior Arena since New Year's Day 2022 (at Simpson).
Darnall said postgame that the team can still get better offensively, noting, "There's still room for improvement, and I think the first half shows that. But it was really nice to see some of the guys get going, and we've just been preaching unselfishness. So, to have 21 assists and reach our goal of having over 20 assists was great to see."
It took just eight guys for the Warriors to put up their monster night, as Darnall looked to just three players coming off the bench. With Wednesday being Jessup's fourth game in six days, Wednesday served as an opportunity for many to rest their legs.
"I'm just trying to find the right times to play (everyone)," added Darnall on the minute use. "We were fortunate to play a lot of guys against UC Davis, and it was great to see our freshman get their first live action. But we'll take it game-by-game and see how it goes."
The bulk of Jessup's offensive outburst came in the second half. After entering the locker room down one at the break, Jessup charged out of the gates in the second half, outscoring CMA by 23 points in the closing 20 minutes. The second-half run started red hot as the Warriors came out of the locker room on a 12-0 run.
"It was our mindset defensively," said Darnall on the run. "We were getting whatever shots we wanted. So, we didn't really talk about offense at all. It was all about focusing on the defensive end because we let them get to 40 points, which is what we have been really good at not doing this year."
"We ramped up our defense, and I think that showed with the numbers at the end of the game with percentages we held them to in the end the score of the game and the second half."
Ja'Maris Blackmon led the way with 23 points on 10-of-13 from the floor. Blackmon was a contributor all over the court, adding six boards and five assists to his stat line.
Three other Warriors closed the night in double-figures:
Emmett Holt (16),
Malik Patton (15), and
Aydan Janssan (12). Janssan led the Warriors in rebounding with eight on a night where Jessup was outrebounded 45-39.
The victory improves Jessup's overall record to 3-1. With Monday's loss at UC Davis being an exhibition, the Warriors find themselves officially on a three-game win streak.
Jessup will look to make it four in a row on Saturday when they welcome the Hustlin' Owls of Oregon Tech to Horton Court for a 2 p.m. tip. The Warriors and Tech last squared off on opening day of the 2022-23 season, an Oregon Tech victory.
Saturday will be the second Hoops for Heroes game. Veteran's dating back to the Korean War will be in attendance as we honor those who served our country. Tickets, including VIP packages, are on sale
HERE.
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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 Jessup University. Follow Jessup Athletics on social media: Jessup University Athletics (Facebook) and @JessupAthletics (Twitter & Instagram).
