By Ryan Vermont:
With just two games left in the regular season, San Jose State knows it will be playing on the opening day of the Mountain West Tournament, but not whom and what time.
The Spartans are in a dogfight for the sixth through eighth place with Fresno State and Utah State, but a lot can change in the standings within the last week of the season. SJSU is currently in eighth place behind both the Bulldogs and Aggies.
That being said, all SJSU can do however compete and fight for wins in its remaining games, beginning with this evening’s game against the Nevada Wolf Pack (10-17, 4-12 MW), a team locked into the ninth spot in next week’s tournament. The game is the last road tilt of the Spartans’ regular season.
The Wolf Pack have lost six of its last eight games, three of them by under single digits.
Last time these teams met up, SJSU put up 31 points in the third quarter, including nine three-pointers, pulling away from UNR after building a lead it would not relinquish.
Guard Dezz Ramos scored her career high 40 points in just 30 minutes played, leading the Spartans to a 107-84 win to open up conference play on Dec. 29.
Jasmine Smith scored 18 points and grabbed 10 rebounds while Myzhanique Ladd added 14 points and 13 rebounds.
The Wolf Pack’s leading scorers this season are the backcourt duo of senior Stephanie Schmid and sophomore Riana Everidge who average 12.2 and 11.1 points a game respectively. Schmid, who scored 16 points in the last matchup against the Spartans, is the lone senior and will be playing her final collegiate home game tonight.
They also have a strong inside presence in the combination of sophomore forwards sophomore Terae Briggs and AJ Cephas. Briggs snatched a game-high 14 rebounds in the game.
While tonight’s game may be between teams low in the conference rankings, it still .could still affect the standings and therefore the seeding for the upcoming Mountain West Tournament. A win for SJSU and other results going its way means a chance to improve its seeding. A loss almost certainly locks the Spartans in the eighth position.
Tip-off is scheduled for 6:30 in Reno, Nevada.