OAKLAND, CALIF. - On Saturday, November 27th, the Sonoma State men's basketball team took on the Hawks of Holy Names in a non-conference matchup. The contest would act as the Seawolves final non-conference preseason matchup as they will kickoff CCAA play next week on Thursday, December 2nd against Cal State Monterey Bay. Head coach Rich Shayewitz and his group were fresh off of a tough 60-53 loss to the Sunbirds of Fresno Pacific the night prior. FPU entered the game undefeated and ranked 10th in the latest West Region poll, posing as a tough matchup for SSU on neutral territory. However, the Seawolves took the Sunbirds down to the wire and also saw three players finish with +10 points on the night. They would look to take their improved defending and balanced offense into their game the following night against Holy Names. 

The Seawolves were off to a nice start at the beginning of the first half as they converted on back-to-back buckets from guard Preston Blakely and forward Wesley Gilbert to give them a 5-0 lead. The Hawks would respond, however, with a 14-0 scoring run to retake the lead and shift momentum. Head coach Rich Shayewitz would hold off on calling an early timeout and let his squad play through the scoring drought. His patience would pay off as SSU would respond with a run of their own. A converted layup and three pointer from senior Nick Klarman would help SSU regain the lead 16-14 before the game entered its second media timeout in a wild and hectic start to the contest. Both teams would go on to exchange buckets for the majority of the half. After a six point lead from Holy Names with under three minutes to play, Sonoma State would get a couple defensive stops and convert on two possessions to make it a two point game heading into the half.  

After a scoring drought from both teams for the first two minutes of the second half, the Hawks and Seawolves would yet again trade buckets throughout the middle portion of the second half. Just under the eleven minute mark the game would intensify as guard Jordan Montgomery would pick up a technical foul. Prior to the tech, it was a one point game but after a Hawks bucket, two free throws, and possession, they would convert on yet another jumper to conclude the 7-point swing and take a 50-42 lead. 

An 8-2 run again from the Seawolves would bring the game back to within two after freshman forward Jaylen Wells got his own rebound and converted the putback layup. The pace of play would come to a halt though after the three minute mark. Holy Names would start to attack the paint and draw foul after foul to get themselves to the free throw line. From there, the Hawks were 26 of 33 in the game with a good amount coming in those final minutes. The Seawolves had a solid percentage from the line but ten fewer made free throws would be a big difference maker in the final outcome. Another significant stat line would come from the three point line as SSU has struggled from that distance for most of the early part of the season and it showed again last night. 

The Seawolves were just 4-19 from deep while the Hawks made 10 three pointers on the night. Sonoma State would eventually fall 72-62 and drop to 0-6 on the season. Despite the tough start, the Seawolves conclude their preseason and will start CCAA play next week on Thursday, December 2nd against Cal State Monterey Bay. They will look at the start of conference play as a clean slate as they continue to build off the positives from each game. Up until the final minutes of last night's game, the Seawolves showed significant improvement on the defensive side of the ball as they held Fresno Pacific to just 60 points the night prior. Nick Klarman and Wesley Gilbert would lead the way for SSU as both recorded double figures on the night. Freshman Jaylen Wells recorded another start as he finished with 7 points and a game high 11 rebounds. Guard Preston Blakely showed his effectiveness as well as he got his third start and finished with 9 points and 3 steals. 

Both the men and women's basketball teams will start conference play this Thursday, December 2nd at 5:30 & 7:30 PM. Tickets can be bought online at sonomaseawolves.com/tickets and the games can be streamed on the CCAA Network. Be sure to follow your Seawolves on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to get all the latest SSU athletics updates and information. @SonomaSeawolves #NomaNation