Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

West Bank Town Becomes ‘Big Prison’ as Israel Fences It In

2 days ago

Trump Says He’s Willing to Let Migrant Farm Laborers Stay in US

2 days ago

US Electric Vehicle Tax Breaks Will Expire on Sept. 30

3 days ago

Eyeing Arctic Dominance, Trump Bill Earmarks $8.6 Billion for US Coast Guard Icebreakers

3 days ago

Trump’s Sweeping Tax-Cut and Spending Bill Wins Congressional Approval

3 days ago

Americans Celebrate Their Independence With Record-Breaking Travel Numbers

3 days ago

US Supreme Court to Decide Legality of Transgender School Sports Bans

3 days ago

Nvidia Set to Become the World’s Most Valuable Company in History

3 days ago

Poll: 41% in US ‘Extremely Proud’ to Be American, Near Historic Low

3 days ago
Fantastic Finish! Huggins Does It All in Bulldogs' Road Win.
GV-Wire-1
By gvwire
Published 6 years ago on
January 10, 2019

Share

Fresno State guard Noah Blackwell pretty well summed up the Bulldogs’ 78-77 victory Wednesday night over Utah State in Logan.
Said Blackwell of teammate Braxton Huggins: “That dude Braxton is something else. He’s a different animal. He’s just built for moments like that and I’m just happy to have him on my team.”
Huggins, who had been in something of a shooting funk entering the Mountain West Conference men’s basketball game, scored a career-high 33 points, including 8 of 13 from behind the 3-point arc.
And, with five seconds remaining, the senior from Bakersfield broke right, then cut left to get defender Sam Merrill on the wrong foot. The straight-away trey went through the net to win it for the Bulldogs.


By the way, until Huggins’ heroics, the Bulldogs had never led in the game.
Merrill launched a 3 as time was winding down, but it was partially blocked. Aggies teammate Quinn Taylor grabbed the rebound while going out of bounds but missed his putback — resulting in Utah State’s first homecourt loss of the season.
All in all, it was quite a night for the Bulldogs, who return to the Save Mart Center on Saturday night for their biggest game of the still young season: a showdown with Nevada, which is ranked No. 10 in the nation and has designs on reaching the Final Four.

The Last Play

“When it got to Braxton he had a choice to run another action or play one-one-one,” explained Bulldogs coach Justin Hutson. “A guy who had been shooting the ball that well — he’s a really good one-on-one player, he’s the best one-on-one player we have — he just created some space and knocked it down.”
And here’s what Huggins had to say:
“We knew we didn’t have a timeout and we knew we needed a three. We just tried looking for the best shot and the ball ended up in my hands. I had a pretty good night going, a pretty good second half and the guys gave me trust to shoot the ball. I said, ‘Yeah, I’m going to try to make a play to finish the game.’ ”
Blackwell added 13 points and six assists, and backcourt mate Deshon Taylor contributed 11 points and 11 assists as the Bulldogs improved to 3-0 in conference play and 12-3 overall.

Rebounding From a Shaky First Half

Utah State started hot from the opening tip-off with a 12-4 run and led by as many as 12 shortly before halftime when the Aggies capped a 9-0 run with a Quinn Taylor lay-up for a 35-23 lead.
But Deshon Taylor made a deep 3-pointer just before the first-half buzzer, and the Bulldogs carried that momentum into the final 20 minutes.
“It was a good game, but obviously a devastating loss,” Utah State guard Brock Miller told the Deseret News. “We led the whole game until the very end. They made some tough plays. Credit to Fresno State, they came out, especially in the second half, and really made some tough shots.”
Merrill scored 16 points and but was held to 3 of 10 from the floor. He was 9 of 11 at the foul line. Neemias Queta also scored 16 on 6-of-6 shooting and grabbed nine rebounds for Utah State (11-5, 1-2).
The Bulldogs made 15 3-pointers — half of their made field goals (30 of 66).

Nevada Overpowers San Jose State

The floodgates opened again for Nevada (15-1, 2-1) on Wednesday night.
After its first loss of the season Saturday, 85-58 at New Mexico, the Wolf Pack returned to form in its 92-53 homecourt win against San Jose State.
“These guys have a green light (from beyond the arc),” Nevada coach Eric Musselman said. “Without a green light, we don’t open the game like we did tonight. We feel like the floodgates are coming, it’s just a matter of when. We’ve played 16 games and one night, the floodgates never came. The other 15 nights, at some point in the game, the floodgates came, and one time it didn’t.”
Caleb Martin led Nevada’s push with 21 of his 23 points in the second half and Jordan Caroline added 19 points. Trey Porter grabbed a season-high 13 rebounds.
Brae Ivey led San Jose State (3-11, 0-2) with 10 points.
(Associated Press contributed to this story.)

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

How Trump’s ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’ Will Make China Great Again

DON'T MISS

What’s Caitlin Clark Worth to the WNBA? A Lot More Than Her $78,066 Salary.

DON'T MISS

Trump to Sign Tax-Cut and Spending Bill in July 4 Ceremony

DON'T MISS

Madre Fire Spurs Evacuations Across 3 Counties, Grows to More Than 70,000 Acres

DON'T MISS

Clovis, Sanger, Madera, and Bass Lake Will Light the Sky With Fireworks Shows Tonight

DON'T MISS

Oil Dips Ahead of Expected OPEC+ Output Increase

DON'T MISS

613 Killed at Gaza Aid Distribution Sites, Near Humanitarian Covoys, Says UN

DON'T MISS

Fresno County Authorities Investigating Suspicious Death of Transient Man

DON'T MISS

West Bank Town Becomes ‘Big Prison’ as Israel Fences It In

DON'T MISS

Israeli Military Kills 20 in Gaza as Trump Awaits Hamas Reply to Truce Proposal

UP NEXT

Clovis, Sanger, Madera, and Bass Lake Will Light the Sky With Fireworks Shows Tonight

UP NEXT

Valley Crime Stoppers’ Most Wanted Person of the Day: Rachelle Maria Blanco

UP NEXT

Boxer Chavez Jr Expected to Be Deported to Mexico to Serve Sentence, Mexican President Says

UP NEXT

Fresno Police to Conduct DUI Checkpoint on Fourth of July, Boost Holiday Patrols

UP NEXT

RIP John Harris: Fresno County Rancher, Racehorse Breeder Was a Visionary Leader Who Leaves a ‘Profound Legacy’

UP NEXT

Valadao, Costa Spar on What Passage of Trump’s Bill Means for Medicaid Recipients

UP NEXT

Kaweah Health Names Its New Chief Nurse. She’s From Texas

UP NEXT

Clovis Police Say At-Risk Missing Woman Found Dead in Mariposa County

UP NEXT

Fresno Police Recover Some of the $40,000 in Fireworks Stolen From Bullard High Team

UP NEXT

Riverdale High School Coach Arrested for Allegedly Arranging to Meet Minor

Trump Calls Musk’s Formation of New Party “Ridiculous” and Confusing

15 minutes ago

Fresno DUI Driver Slams Into CHP Motorcycle, Tow Truck on Highway 99

6 hours ago

Russia Downs 120 Ukrainian Drones Overnight, Defense Ministry Says

7 hours ago

Israel Sends Delegation to Qatar for Gaza Talks Ahead of Netanyahu Trip to US

7 hours ago

San Luis Obispo’s Madre Fire Grows to Nearly 80,000 Acres, 30% Contained

7 hours ago

Musk Announces Forming of ‘America Party’ in Further Break From Trump

7 hours ago

Death Toll From Texas Floods Reaches 59, Including 21 Children

7 hours ago

California’s Politics Drifts Right While New York’s Leans Left

8 hours ago

How Trump’s ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’ Will Make China Great Again

1 day ago

What’s Caitlin Clark Worth to the WNBA? A Lot More Than Her $78,066 Salary.

1 day ago

TikTok Building New Version of App Ahead of Expected US Sale, the Information Reports

TikTok is building a new version of its app for users in the United States ahead of a planned sale of the app to a group of investors, The I...

5 minutes ago

A logo is displayed over a door at the U.S. headquarters of the social media company TikTok in Culver City, California, U.S. January 17, 2025. (Reuters File)
5 minutes ago

TikTok Building New Version of App Ahead of Expected US Sale, the Information Reports

Boxes of aid are stacked as Gaza Humanitarian Foundation said it has commenced operations to begin distribution of aid, in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, May 26, 2025. (Reuters File)
6 minutes ago

Hamas Government Office Rejects US Accusation of Involvement in Gaza Aid Site Attack

A volunteer searches for flood victims after deadly flooding in Kerr County, Texas, U.S., July 6, 2025. REUTERS/Sergio Flores
9 minutes ago

Death Toll From Texas Floods Reaches 78, Trump Plans Visit

Tesla CEO and X owner Elon Musk listens as US President-elect Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with House Republicans at the Hyatt Regency hotel in Washington, DC, U.S. on November 13, 2024. (Reuters File)
15 minutes ago

Trump Calls Musk’s Formation of New Party “Ridiculous” and Confusing

A 22-year-old suspected DUI driver crashed into a parked CHP motorcycle and tow truck on Highway 99 near Fresno, narrowly missing an officer and bystanders, CHP said Saturday, July 5, 2025. (CHP)
6 hours ago

Fresno DUI Driver Slams Into CHP Motorcycle, Tow Truck on Highway 99

A service member of a drone unit of the 24th Separate Mechanized Brigade named after King Danylo of the Ukrainian Armed Forces controls a heavy combat drone while it flies over positions of Russian troops, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Donetsk Region, Ukraine June 12, 2025. (Reuters File)
7 hours ago

Russia Downs 120 Ukrainian Drones Overnight, Defense Ministry Says

An Israeli tank maneuvers in Gaza, as seen from the Israeli side of the border, July 6, 2025. (Reuters/Amir Cohen)
7 hours ago

Israel Sends Delegation to Qatar for Gaza Talks Ahead of Netanyahu Trip to US

The Madre Fire near New Cuyama has burned nearly 80,000 acres as of Sunday, July 6, 2025, morning, prompting widespread evacuation orders and warnings across three counties. (CalFire)
7 hours ago

San Luis Obispo’s Madre Fire Grows to Nearly 80,000 Acres, 30% Contained

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend