SANTA CRUZ, Calif. – The FPU men's basketball team squared off against San Jose State inside the Kaiser Permanente Arena on Wednesday evening, marking the first outside competition for the Blue and Orange since February 29. Behind a big half from senior Aamondae Coleman, the Sunbirds erased a 20-point halftime deficit to the tie the game with 5:28 left, but it wasn't enough as the Spartans held on to take the exhibition by a final of 87-79.
 
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:

• Final: SJSU 87, FPU 79 
• Location: Kaiser Permanente Arena | Santa Cruz, Calif. 

QUOTABLE: 

• "I told the team that we are really impressed with their ability to make adjustments and get stops in the half court, which is what we needed to do. Offensively, we did not shoot it well all night, but we got some stuff around the rim to go and got to the free throw line a little bit. There aren't enough good things to say about our student-athletes. The lack of preparation did not phase them because of their togetherness, their ability to learn on the fly with us and their maturity. Moving forward, we're just going to count our blessings that we get to play." – fifth-year head Coach C.J. Haydock 

 
HOW IT HAPPENED:

• The Spartans opened the contest with an efficient 10-2 run that over the first 1:55 of the game.
• Layups from Adrian Antunez and Raine McKeython combined with a three-pointer from Garrett Cook helped the Sunbirds close the gap to 14-9 with 14:45 remaining in the first half. 
• An 18-0 run from the Spartans propelled them to a 32-9 lead with 9:51 to play before the break, but MeKeython ended the half with a three-pointer to send the game to intermission with the Spartans in front 52-32.
• The Sunbirds opened the second half with an 11-6 run, including eight points from Coleman.
• Over the next 3:55, the Sunbirds outscored the Spartans 13-0, cutting the deficit to two with eight minutes remaining. 
• A jumper from Antunez gave The Sunbirds a 60-59 lead with 11:08 left in the game, and the two teams exchanged buckets over the next six possessions. 
• Coleman tied the game at 71 -71 with 5:28 remaining, but the Spartans closed it out with a 16-8 run.

STATS FROM THE GAME:

• Coleman finished with 30 points, including 24 in the second half, and 11 rebounds to round out the double-double. 
• Antunez came close to a triple-double, scoring 17 points while adding down eight boards and dishing out six assists. 
• Spencer Heimerdinger and McKeython scored nine points apiece and snagged three rebounds each. 
• The Sunbirds outscored the Spartans 47-35 in the second half while shooting 46% from the floor. 
• The Sunbird defense forced 16 turnovers and would go on to score 22 points off of turnovers. 

 
SOCIAL:

• Twitter - @fpusunbirds
• Instagram - @fpusunbirds 
• Facebook - /FPUathletics

 
UP NEXT:

• The Sunbirds return to action on Saturday with a visit to former conference foe California Baptist. Tipoff from Riverside is scheduled for 3:00 p.m.