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Basketball

Mar 03
0

Bulldogs shoot to victory over rival Spartans

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The Fresno State men’s basketball team (13-17, 7-12 in MW) prevailed on senior night and their final home game of the season in a 82-68 win over San Jose State University (8-22, 3-16 in MW) on March 3 at the Save Mart Center. 

The senior duo of guards Jake Heidbreder and Cameron Faas combined for 32 points and were hot from beyond-the-arch—combining for 6 of the Bulldogs’ 11 three-point makes. The three-point shooting from Heidbreder and Faas has been on display all season, averaging 31.8% and 36.2% respectively—a season Faas is thankful for. 

“I started at JUCO and it’s been really cool to see each level as I move up. I’m very grateful to be here and have coaches who are willing to literally give you everything,” Faas said. “You never have a time when you can’t workout, you never have someone who’s not available when you need something. The process of being here and working with everybody has been my favorite.”

Heidbreder added that this season was the most diligent team he has been a part of during his long college career.

“This is by far the most hard working team I’ve been on. They’re just in the gym, hours upon hours, every single day, before practice, after practice. That’s been the most fun for me being here,” Heidbreder said. 

Key players

Jake Heidbreder (FS): 20 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist

Wilson Jacques (FS): 16 points (2-2 3fg), 19 rebounds, 3 blocks

Colby Garland (SJSU): 26 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists

Adrian Myers (SJSU): 17 points, 16 rebounds, 1 steal

What happened

Both teams started the game cold on offense, going a combined 3-13 from the field in the opening minutes, with the lone scorers for the Bulldogs being forward Deshawn Gory with a quick layup and center Wilson Jacques with the rare three-pointer to tie things up 5-5. 

Following the stall on offense, both teams found their footing, with guard Colby Garland leading the way for the Spartans and forward Deshawn Gory leading the Bulldogs to a 15-12 point lead midway through the first half.

To close out the first half, the Bulldogs kept things rolling with well balanced scoring—with seven of the eight players who received minutes contributing to the scoring column and Gory leading the way with 10 points. For the Spartans, Garland and forward Adrian Myers helped the team stay afloat, combining for 20 of the Spartans’ 34 first half points. 

However, the Bulldogs would pull away in the final minutes of the first half to enjoy a 45-34 lead heading into halftime. 

Garland and the Spartans opened the second half hot on offense, going 3-3 in the early minutes to kickstart a Spartan comeback and trim the lead within single digits. However, the steady play of Heidbreder helped extend the lead back to double digits halfway through the second half.

Following the hot start on offense, both teams ran cold as the ball failed to go through the net which resulted in a lengthy scoring drought. But, the play of Heidbreder once again helped put some points on the board and spur the Bulldog offense to close the game en route to the 82-68 victory.

What’s next

The Bulldogs wrap-up the season against Grand Canyon University (18-11, 11-7 in MW) on March 7 at 5 p.m—a series the Lopes lead 1-0—before heading to Las Vegas for the Mountain West basketball tournament. 

As it stands, the Bulldogs are in a battle with the University of Wyoming for the ninth or tenth seed. Depending on the outcome, the ninth seed will play the eight seed and the tenth seed will play the seventh seed. 

Regarding the sixth through eighth seeds, Colorado State University, Boise State University, and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas are all locked in with a record of 10-8—so the fight for tournament seeding is very fluid as teams close out the season this week.

Recap and cover photo courtesy by Vincent Ordonio.

Feb 28
0

Dogs fall flat in fourth on Senior Day

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The Fresno State women’s basketball team (14-16, 8-10 in MW) fell to the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (19-10, 14-5 in MW) in a 68-54 loss on Feb. 28 at the Save Mart Center.

The Lady Rebels are one of the top defensive teams in the Mountain West—ranking highly in different defensive categories—and as a result, held the Bulldogs’ offense to 31.5% shooting on the night. But, with dwindling roster availability, Head Coach Ryan McCarthy also credited it to fatigue.

“Part of it too is fatigue on our part, UNLV is a great team. I don’t think it was what we didn’t do, that’s what a great team does to a team like us,” McCarthy said. 

To name a few statistics, the Lady Rebels rank fifth in opponent field-goal percentage (39%), third in blocks (3.38 bpg), and second in opponent turnovers (12.69 tpg).

Additionally, before tip-off, the Bulldogs honored six seniors: Morelia Chavez, Indiya Clark, Djessira Diawara, Jaisa Gamble, Hedda Köehne, and Emilia Long—players that McCarthy highly values when it comes to creating team culture. 

“In the days of transfers and those types of things, and to have six seniors say, ‘if I could do this again in the same place, I would’, that speaks volumes to the underclassmen and players becoming future Bulldogs,” McCarthy said.

Key players

Emilia Long (FS): 14 points, 11 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals

Jaisa Gamble (FS): 9 points, 6 rebounds, 4 steals, 5 turnovers

Aali Alexander (UNLV): 21 points, 2 rebounds, 3 steals

Roland Meadow (UNLV): 17 points, 12 rebounds, 2 assists

What happened

The Bulldogs opened the first quarter with a sloppy start, turning the ball over eight times, which the Lady Rebels converted into seven points. Additionally, the Lady Rebels made a living in the paint, scoring 12 points under the rim.

But, the steady play of the Bulldogs’ senior duo of  Emilia Long and Jiasa Gamble was enough to keep the ‘Dogs in the game—given the 18-10 Lady Rebel cushion to end the quarter. 

The Lady Rebels picked up where they left off, in the first quarter, pounding the paint to grow their lead. However, the Bulldogs answer with paint points of their own spearheaded by forward Djessira Diawara and her aggressiveness under the rim to ignite a 7-2 run to cut into the 26-19 LadyRebel lead. 

Despite that, the Lady Rebels responded with a run of their own—and combined with their stout defense—the Lady Rebels entered halftime 36-22.

The Bulldogs opened the third quarter with a 7-4 run, sparked by the freshman guard Ava Marr. Marr was responsible for four of the seven points to trim the Lady Rebel lead to 40-31—forcing the Lady Rebels to call a timeout midway through the quarter. 

Following the timeout, the Lady Rebels made adjustments to keep the Bulldogs’ hot shooting at bay to close the quarter up 48-36.

In the final quarter, the Lady Rebels were sharp on the defensive end, staying in a 2-3 zone defense for much of the quarter—giving the Bulldogs a fit. To add salt to the wound, the Lady Rebels were on a heater on offense, going 8-13 (61.5%) from the field and 4-8 (50%) from beyond-the-arc en route to the 68-54 Lady Rebel victory.

What’s next

The Bulldogs wrap up the season at The Pit to face New Mexico University (20-9, 12-6 in MW) on March 3 at 6 p.m. 

With the Mountain West Basketball Tournament on the horizon, the Bulldogs will most likely finish the season as the seventh seed and face Grand Canyon University (11-17, 10-8 in MW). This season, the Lopes swept the season series against the Bulldogs in double digit wins, going 2-0.

Recap written by Vincent Ordonio, cover photo courtesy of Evan Hernandez.

Feb 27
0

One final ride: Senior Day preview

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The first year under Head Coach Ryan McCarthy for Fresno State women’s basketball (14-15, 9-10) is nearing its end, with just two games left before heading to Las Vegas for the program’s final Mountain West Conference tournament (March 7-10) before joining the Pac-12 this July. 

The Bulldogs will wrap up the regular season at New Mexico on Tuesday, March 3. But before that comes, they have one final home game this Saturday at 2 p.m. as part of a doubleheader with the men’s team (scheduled to play at 4:30 p.m.). 

Fresno State will welcome the University of Las Vegas, Nevada (18-10, 13-5) for its final game at the Save Mart Center for the 2025-26 season. The Bulldogs will look for revenge after falling 85-59 to the Rebels on New Years Eve. Fresno State opened the first quarter with a 14-12 lead before falling behind quickly in the second quarter. 

Prior to the game on Saturday, Fresno State will honor its six graduating seniors, all transfers: Emilia Long, Jaisa Gamble, Indiya Clarke, Hedda Köehne, Djessira Diawara and Morelia Chavez.

Photo by Vincent Ordonio (FSM)

Emilia Long

Millie comes to Fresno State after beginning her college career helping lead Peninsula College to back-to-back conference titles and being named defensive player of the year. Long then made a pit stop at Cal Poly Humboldt where she was named Newcomer of the Year in both basketball and soccer. Fun Fact: The Washington native was a four-sport star (basketball, soccer, tennis, track) in High School at Port Angeles. 

Long then transferred to the University of Alaska Anchorage where she ran McCarthy’s offense averaging 12.2 points per game, 5.2 assists per game and 3.6 rebounds per game. She was also named conference DPOY after leading the nation with 4.1 steals per game. Her success has carried over to the Division I level as a captain for Fresno State. The guard leads the Bulldogs this season with 13.4 PPG, 3.7 APG and 2.4 SPG while starting in all 29 games. 

“[Emilia] kind of embodies what we want our program to be about. Three girls on this team out of high school had division one offers, and she was not one of those players. She just plays with that ultimate chip on her shoulder,” McCarthy said. 

Jaisa Gamble

The Bay Area native played at UC San Diego and Laney College before joining McCarthy in Alaska the last two years where she started in 55 of 61 games. A pickpocket wizard, Gamble has averaged at least 1.8 SPG each of the last four seasons. 

Gamble has played in all 29 games for the Bulldogs this season, averaging 8.3 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 2 APG and 2.1 SPG as a captain of the defense. Fun Fact: Gamble did a study abroad program during her senior year of High School.

Gamble has scored in double figures 10 times this season for the Bulldogs, including a 13 point, 7 rebound, 4 steal performance in a win at Utah State earlier this month. She scored a season high 18 against Fresno Pacific to open the season back in November. 

Indiya Clarke

The Alaska native spent her first three seasons playing at Wofford College in South Carolina before coming to Fresno. Clarke has played in 21 games this season (11 GS), averaging 4.9 PPG and 4.2 RPG. She also has a career high 17 steals. 

The senior guard had 11 points, 9 rebounds and a pair of steals in a win over San Jose State on January 7th. Fun Facts: Clarke grew up doing gymnastics before playing basketball. She also loves photography and hiking. 

“She’s been very consistent for us, and she’s just a big, strong woman,” McCarthy said. “That’s not somebody you want to get run over by, so she just gives us that edge that I felt we needed.”

Hedda Köehne

Köehne averaged 10.1 PPG, 6.8 RPG and 2.2 BPG in 50 games playing at Otero Junior College. The German native transferred to the University of Alaska Anchorage for the 2024-25 season where she averaged 5.7 PPG and 1.3 BPG. 

During this season, Köehne has played in 28 of 29 games, averaging 3.2 PPG & 3.9 RPG in just over 17 minutes per game. She also had 16 steals and 9 blocks on the season. Her best game of the game came back in November when she scored 10 points and a game-high 14 rebounds in the Bulldogs 61-48 victory over Louisiana. Fun Facts: “Heddi” would like to return to living in Europe after college. She is also bilingual (German and English). 

Djessira Diawara

Arguably the most experienced player on this team’s roster, is currently in her sixth season after stops at Salt Lake CC (2020-22), Clarendon College (2022-23), Houston (2023-24) and San Jose State (2024-25) before coming to Fresno State. 

The Mali native has played in 26 games this season, including 10 starts, scoring 5.1 PPG, while grabbing 4.5 RPG on 47.3% shooting. The forward scored 8 points and grabbed a season high 13 rebounds at San Jose State on February 4th. Fun Facts: Diawara is left-handed but shoots with her right hand. She also speaks three languages: English, French and Bambara. 

Morelia Chavez

Chavez came to Fresno State after spending two seasons with Eastern Arizona College before transferring to Florida State for her junior season. The Michoacan, Mexico native is averaging 3.3 PPG and 1.9 RPG while playing in 24 games (10.6 MPG) this season. 
Chavez has scored in double figures in three of her last six games, including a 13-point, 7-rebound performance in a win at San Jose State on February 4th. Fun Facts: Like Köehne and Diawara, “Momo” speaks multiple languages, Spanish and English.

Story written by Al Scott, cover photo courtesy of Ryan Sepulveda.

Feb 21
0

Potential upset slips out of Dogs paws in 80-78 loss

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Despite holding a 22 point lead in the first half, the Fresno State men’s basketball team (12-14, 6-9 in MW) let it slip away to the University of New Mexico (20-6, 11-4 in MW) in a 80-78 loss on Feb. 21 at the Save Mart Center.

Head coach Vance Walberg felt that mistakes that snowballed into the final minutes of the game was what led to the loss.

“We had some goofy plays along the end, we had some bad turnovers that go to live ball bucket—those are the things we got to clean up,” Walberg said in a post-game press conference.

Walberg also provided an update on guard D.J. Stickman, who left last game against the University of Wyoming with what was confirmed to be an ACL injury and will have surgery next week.

That leaves the Bulldogs without guards Stickman and David Douglas Jr. (knee fracture) for the rest of the season.

With roster availability dwindling, Walberg noted the lack of depth on the roster.

“We got to play picture perfect, and we don’t have enough talent right now to make some of the mistakes we made,” Walberg said in a post-game press conference. “I feel bad for them, because they put their heart out—they’re such good kids and they work their tail off.”

Despite the loss, the Bulldogs saw good production from forward Deshawn Gory, guard Jake Heidbreder, and center Wilson Jacque—who recorded another double-double and even extended his shooting to the mid-range area throughout the game. 

Key players

Deshawn Gory (FS): 21 points, 8 rebounds, 1 steal

Jake Heidbreder (FS): 22 points, 1 rebound, 4 assists 3 steals

Wilson Jacques (FS): 16 points, 10 rebounds, 1 assist

Deyton Albury (UNM): 21 points, 8 rebounds, 2 steals

Jake Hall (UNM): 20 points, 4 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 steal

What happened

The Bulldogs opened the game hot on offense, starting the game on a 9-0 run, kickstarted by the activity on the defensive boards which spurred high paced offense. However, Lobos guard Jake Hall—who is 44.3% from beyond-the-arc— would put a stop to the run following a three-pointer. 

Despite that, the Bulldogs continued to crash the boards and move the ball to jump out to a 26-10 lead midway through the first half, with six players contributing to the scoring column—forward Deshawn Gory and guard Jake Heidbreder lead the offense with eight points a piece.

For the remainder of the first half, the Bulldogs cooled down on both ends of the floor, as the Lobos chipped at the large deficit. Led by Hall and his efficient offense, the Lobos were to get within 10 points of the Bulldogs, but the ‘Dogs’ offense was able to keep them afloat for the 44-32 point cushion heading into halftime.

After one half, Jake Heidbreder led all scorers with 13 points on an efficient 4-5 from the field, 3-4 from three-point range, and 2-2 from the free-throw line— Hall was a close second, with 12 points as both players are already on track to surpass their season averages (17.5 ppg and 15.8 ppg respectively).

The Bulldogs opened the second half flat footed on defense, allowing the guard trio of Deyton Albury, Luke Haupt, and Antionio Chol to combine for 11 points on 4-7 (57.14%) shooting from the field to trim the ‘Dogs’ lead to 54-50—with the lone second half scorer being Gory, who claimed seven points.

Following that, the same Lobo scoring trio continued to put points on the board—even holding a brief lead over the Bulldogs—however, center Wilson Jacques would get the ‘Dogs over the scoring hump as he pitched in eight points to Gory’s 11 to put the ‘Dogs up 66-65 with seven minutes left to play. 

To close out the game, both teams traded the lead, however the late game heroics of Hapt would help the Lobos pull away and eventually take the 80-78 win as the second half performance from Gory and Jacques wasn’t enough to keep the Bulldogs in the game.

What’s next

The Bulldogs take a short road trip to Colorado State University (16-10) to take on the Rams, who are 7-8 in conference play and two spots above the ‘Dogs in the Mountain West (MW) standings, on Feb. 28 at 4:30 p.m. This matchup marks the second meeting between the two teams this season, with the ‘Dogs coming out on top in a 79-69 win on Jan. 13.

Following the Broncos, the Bulldogs host two home games. The first contest is against Boise State University (15-11, 7-8 in MW) on March 3 at 6 p.m. The final home game of the season is against San Jose State University (7-19, 2-13 in MW) on March 7 at 5 p.m. 

This final stretch of the season is important for the Bulldogs as they look to stack up wins for better tournament seeding with the Mountain West Basketball Tournament, which is steadily approaching.

Recap written by and cover photo courtesy of Vincent Ordonio (FSM).

Feb 11
0

Bulldogs upset Broncos in blackout thriller

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The Fresno State women’s basketball team (13-13) improved to 7-8 in conference play on Feb. 11 after a 75-69 win against Boise State University (19-6), snapping their nine game win streak.

The Broncos are one of the premier teams in the Mountain West (3rd place overall) and rank highly in different offensive categories, so the Bulldogs were due for a challenging night. Head Coach Ryan McCarthy thought the Bulldogs rose to the occasion.

“Not only is Boise State the top offensive team, they’re the hottest team—they won nine in a row in this league. To take them down like that, that’s a hard thing to do.” McCarthy said. 

Guarding a team of that caliber brings physicality on defense, and as a result, Jaisa Gamble—who is a large focal point of the Bulldogs’ defense—battled foul trouble all game. As a result, during the non-Gamble minutes, McCarthy thought the team held up well as he saw some strong production for guard Aloni Oliver.

“I was really proud of Aloni Oliver for coming in and giving us some solid minutes—getting big rebounds and just overall hustle plays—I felt that created momentum for us a little bit,” McCarthy said. “When you get a player that maybe doesn’t play as much, go in there and have a couple big moments, I think that fires everybody up.”

Despite sitting on the sidelines for much of the game, Gamble’s impact was still felt on the court, as she remained vocal on the bench. 

“Even when she’s not on the court, she’s always actively helping us out with our intensity, so that helped me a lot to stay focused,” guard Danae Powell said. 

Key players

Danae Powell (FS): 22 points, 2 assists, 3 steals

Emilia Long (FS): 18 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists

Natalie Pasco (BSU): 19 points, 2 rebounds, 2 steals

Tatum Thompson (BSU): 16 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists

What happened

The Broncos opened the game scorching hot from the field, going 5-5 from the field and 2-2 from three-point range sparked by their leading scorer guard Tatum Thompson, who had 8 of the Broncos’ 12 points in the opening minutes to earn a 12-5 lead.

However, the Bulldogs’ senior duo of guard Emilia Long and Gamble—who combined for 11 of the ‘Dogs’ 24 first quarter points—helped pave the way for the ‘Dogs to earn a 24-16 lead heading into the second quarter.

The Bulldogs carried their momentum into the second quarter, primarily on the defensive end, forcing six Bronco turnovers which the ‘Dogs converted into nine points. The Bulldogs also got scoring contributions from seven different players, who combined for 21 points (7-16 fg), with Powell leading the way with seven points as the Bulldogs entered halftime up 45-33.

The Bulldogs opened the third quarter in a rut on offense, going 1-8 in the opening minutes as the Broncos found their groove on offense led by Thompson once again to chip at the 51-47 lead. To add salt to the wound, Gamble entered foul trouble and had to sit out for the remainder of the quarter.

Even with the foul trouble, Long was proud of her leadership on the bench.

“Despite her being on the bench for a lot of the game, she was a very good vocal leader on the bench—always guiding us even when she was out—so we’re proud of her.” Long said.

The Bulldogs’ close the quarter strong as the defense was able to hold up despite the absence of Gamble, but Thompson and Broncos kept the game close with the’Dogs leading 59-55.

The final quarter was tightly contested, but the Bulldogs remained in the driver’s seat due to the well-balanced scoring effort, with six different players contributing to the scoring column, and the stout defense as Gamble was able to close out the game with four personal fouls en route to the 75-69 win. 

What’s next

The Bulldogs resume play on a two-game road trip. Their first stop is against Utah State University (6-16)—who are 2-12 in conference play— on Feb. 15 at 12 p.m., and their final stop is against the MW leading San Diego State University (18-4)—who are 12-1 in conference play—on Feb. 21 at 1 p.m.

The Bulldogs are back at the Save Mart Center on Feb. 25 against Grand Canyon University (9-15), who are 8-6 in conference play, at 6:30 p.m. The Bulldogs look to redeem themselves after the Lopes took home the win in their first meeting on Jan. 10 in a 71-64 loss.

Recap written by and cover photo courtesy of Vincent Ordonio.

Feb 07
0

Lady Dogs roll over Wolfpack

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The Fresno State women’s basketball team (12-13) improved to 6-8 in conference play following a dominant performance in a 71-51 win over the University of Nevada, Reno (12-21) on Feb. 7 at the Save Mart Center.

Despite getting doubled teamed upon tip-off, guard Emilia Long wasn’t phased, with Head Coach Ryan McCarthy noting that it was something he anticipated.

“[Long] is one of the best guards in the league, a lot of what we do goes through her, and I think that teams are going to start to game plan to take her out—which was something that we figured would happen this game.” McCarthy said.

McCarthy added that this was something they prepare for in practice where other players bring the ball up court. 

“It was smart on their part to do it and it’s something we definitely spend some time on in practice,” McCarthy said. “[Gamble] brought the ball up the floor quite a bit, [Long] is going to be at the top of people’s list but that didn’t work.”

Key players

Emilia Long (FS): 23 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 block, 3 steals

Jaisa Gamble (FS): 15 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 4 steals

Skylar Durley (UNR): 17 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal

What happened

To open the first quarter, the Wolfpack was aggressive on defense, which opened the game up for others to contribute to the scoring column—like forward Jaisa Gamble, and guards Danae Powell and Ava Marr, who combined for 12 points. In addition to the scoring, the Bulldogs showed out on defense, forcing five Wolfpack turnovers which resulted in eight points to add to the 20-7 lead after one quarter. 

In the second quarter, the Wolfpack found their footing on offense, led by guard Skylar Durley who scored 6 of the Wolfpacks’ 14 second quarter points. But, the Wolfpack couldn’t contain forward Morelia Chavez—who went 3-4 from the field and 2-3 from deep for a total of eight points. As a result, the Bulldogs went into halftime with a 34-21 advantage.

The third quarter saw both teams trading baskets, as the Bulldogs continued to find open lanes to the rim for 20 paint points and the Wolfpack went on to find the open player for four third quarter assists. But, the Bulldogs’ first quarter scoring output proved to be important as the ‘Dogs maintained the 55-41 lead heading into the final quarter. 

To close out the game, the Bulldogs opened the floodgates on offense and tamed the Wolfpack on defense. The Bulldogs held the Wolfpack to 10 points as they went 4-13 (30.8%) from the field in the fourth quarter and in contrast, the ‘Dogs scored 18 points in the quarter and went 6-10 (60%) from the field en route to the 71-51 win.

What’s next

The Bulldogs remain home as they take on a tough matchup against Boise State University (19-5) on Feb. 11 at 6:30 p.m.

The Broncos are one of the premier teams in the Mountain West (MW), ranking third overall, as they are 10-3 in conference play. The Broncos are also one of the elite offensive teams, averaging 72.1 ppg and are 40% from beyond-the-arc—which is both good for first place in the MW respectively.

Recap written by and cover photo courtesy of Vincent Ordonio (FSM).

Feb 04
0

‘Dogs win marathon on Heidbreder buzzer beater

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Words won’t do justice to what 5,557 fans witnessed at the Save Mart Center on Tuesday night.

After three hours of basketball, six technicals, four flagrants, one bloody mouth, two groin shots, and 63 total fouls; Fresno State senior guard Jake Heidbreder saved the best for last: a game-winning buzzer beater to cap off a 7-0 run in the final 6.8 seconds to defeat UNLV 98-96. Head Coach Vance Walberg was still in shock about 20 minutes after the game ended.

“In 48 years of coaching, I’ve never seen that in my life, glad we’re on the winning end. You guys have been here many times where I told you about the basketball gods, and I believe if you keep working hard, good things can happen. And I think they really helped us today,” Walberg said. 

Heidbreder finished with 29 points, including the game winner, and a bloody mouth. But he wasn’t the only contributor. Backup point guard Bastien Rieber (15 points, 4 assists) was pivotal off the bench in 21 minutes of play. DeShawn Gory (15 points), Zaon Collins (16 points) and Wilson Jaques (10 points) also scored in double figures. 

“I think was a really great team win. We always stay together, even when we are down by six or seven, we stay together to come back and play until the last second,” Rieber said. “It’s very important to win a game like this, because we lost a couple of games by one or two points.”

Key players

Jake Heidbreder (FS): 29 points (9-14 FG), 2 steals

Zaon Collins (FS): 16 points, 3 assists

Howie Fleming Jr. (UNLV): 23 points, 9 rebounds, 6 steals

Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn (UNLV): 28 points, 4 assists

What happened 

UNLV came out hot, scoring on eight of its first 13 possessions. After a second chance, Naas Cunningham found Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn open, who nailed a three to put the Rebels up 19-10 with 13:15 remaining in the half. 

Fresno State finally found its groove. A Cameron Faas jumper followed by free throws from Bastien Rieber (2) and Gaspar Kovevar (1) made it 19-15. A couple layups later from Jake Heidbreder and Zaon Collins tied the game at 19 apiece. The Bulldogs would end up going on a 19-4 run, capped off by a three from Heidbreder to make it 29-23 Fresno State with 7:55 left and forcing a Rebels timeout. 

UNLV retook a lead at 38-37 thanks to a turnaround jumper from Gibbs-Lawhorn. The teams would trade leads on five straight possessions before a media timeout. UNLV took the lead again on a corner three from Issac Williamson. The Rebels went into halftime shooting 58% from the field to lead the Bulldogs 50-49.

UNLV opened the second half with a pair of driving layups from Fleming Jr. and Gibbs-Lawhorn. A flagrant foul by David Douglas Jr. sent Fleming Jr. to the line where he made it 55-49. A three from Faas ending the Bulldogs scoring drought. 

Gory made it 55-54 the next possession with a mid-range jumper. Gibbs-Lawhorn answered back with a three of his own before a media timeout with 15:13 remaining. The Rebels broke the game open with a 14-2 run before an and-one layup from Rieber to make it 69-59. 

A passionate heckler made eye contact with Walberg with about 10 minutes left in the game before telling the former Clovis West coach to go back to High School. 

“I hear that all the time. When I worked with George Carl, George would call me high school. I’ve been through it now. You hear people, it’s just the business world,” Walberg said. 

Walberg said that he’s not sure what’s going to happen at the end of the year, in regards to his future with the program but emphasized that he’s been proud of the growth he’s seen out of his team.

“I feel like we’re getting better and better, and that as a coach, that’s all you can do. As bad as we were last year, if you really go back and look, we got better and better by the end of the year. And I think that’s the work ethic of the kids that we have. The players we have are why that happens,” Walberg said.

A corner three from Walter Brown gave the Rebels a 76-68 lead with 6:44 left. Collins found Heidbreder open under the hoop the next play for a driving layup to make it a two-possession game. 

Rieber drove to the layup and drew a foul on Gibbs-Lawhorn (fouled out), before making both free throws to cut the deficit to 86-80 with 2:06 run. Rieber hit a three with 23 seconds to make it 92-89. 

“Coach told me before the game that it’s one of my goals during the games to try to stay with him the whole game,” Rieber. “So that’s what I did.”

About 10 fouls and timeouts later, David Douglas Jr. tied the game at 96 with three from the top of the key with 1.5 seconds left. After a forced turnover, the Bulldogs found Heidbreder who did what he does best: make jumpers. The senior finished with 29 points including the game winner. 

“It was amazing. Nothing else to say, it was just amazing,” Rieber said.

What’s next

The Bulldogs head to Reno this weekend, playing at Nevada (16-7) on Saturday night at 7 p.m. They will look to get revenge after falling 66-65 at home to the Wolf Pack on Jan. 3. 

“We gave that Nevada game away, which really bugs the heck out of me. We know they’re a very good team, especially at their place, but again, I believe if we do the things right, we’ll give ourselves a chance again,” Walberg said. 

From there, they will play at Utah State (18-3) on Tuesday, Feb. 10 before returning home to play Air Force (3-19) at the Save Mart Center on Valentines Day, Feb. 14 at 2 p.m.

Injury updates

Guard DJ Stickman (concussion) missed his second straight game. He’s doubtful to play on Saturday at Nevada.

Feb 01
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January Dogs of the Month: Gory and Powell rising

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Both Fresno State men’s and women’s basketball teams find themselves in the thick of conference play with plenty of opportunity to make something happen down the stretch of the season. 

Two underclassmen made their mark in the month of January, steadying the rock and keeping the Bulldogs afloat.

On the men’s side, DeShawn Gory has become a force on both ends of the floor. In the month of January, the freshman forward is averaging 15.6 points per game and 10.1 rebounds per game on an efficient 49.1% shooting from the field. 

Back in November, Walberg applauded Gory’s attention to detail and his work ethic in putting in extra time and work, especially defensively and in rebounding. It paid off for him. Gory’s rapid rise shouldn’t be all that surprising considering Gory’s athleticism. 

Gory and the Bulldogs return to the Save Mart Center on Tuesday, Feb. 3 to host the University of Las Vegas, Nevada at 8 p.m.

For the women’s team, Danae Powell has risen to new heights in her sophomore season after primarily being used off the bench a year ago. The point guard is averaging 10.5 PPG and 3.5 RPG per game, both marks are double what she averaged during the 2024-25 season. 

Powell’s play has been even more impressive since the beginning of 2026, averaging 12.9 PPG, 3.7 RPG over the last 9 games. She also had 16 assists and 11 steals during that stretch. 

The 5’7” guard from Las Vegas will look to take her hot streak into February, beginning on Wednesday evening in Silicon Valley when Fresno State plays at San Jose State, tip-off is set for 7 p.m. The Bulldogs return home on Saturday, Feb. 7 to host Nevada. 

Honorable Mentions

Story written by Al Scott, photos courtesy of Ryan Sepulveda (FSM).

Jan 24
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‘Dogs run out of gas in loss to Lopes

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The Save Mart Center played host to its second highest attended and arguably the loudest Fresno State basketball game of the season on Saturday with an announced attendance of 6,462. They were treated to a back-and-forth second half that saw six lead changes. 

Fresno State (9-11, 3-6) came out on the losing end though, falling 68-57 to Grand Canyon (13-6, 6-2). Jaden Henley led the Lopes with 23 points. Fresno State was within three points before a 10-2 run in the final 2 minutes of the game. Fresno State Head Coach Vance Walberg expressed disappointment after the game. 

“We didn’t shoot the ball very well. I think that’s an understatement, but I thought we still gave ourselves a chance to win. But again, you can’t give up 17 offensive rebounds. I think we got outscored by what, 17 or 18 on second chance points. In a game like this, it’s just going to kill you,” Walberg said.

He added that the crowd was phenomenal and a big reason they were able to stay competitive despite the shooting woes. 

“I love to see that, and I’d love to see it get bigger and bigger. But we got to do our job, the more we win, the more people are going to come,” Walberg said. 

Key players 

  • DeShawn Gory (FS): 19 points, 10 rebounds, 1 block, 1 steal
  • David Douglas Jr. (FS): 15 points (4-7 3FG)
  • Jaden Henley (GCU): 23 points (7-15 FG), 10 rebounds, 3 assists

What happened 

Caleb Shaw opened the scoring with a three for the Lopes. A minute later, David Douglas Jr. found a cutting Jake Heidbreder under the basket for a layup. The Lopes responded with a 6-1 run including a pair of baskets from 7’1” center Efe Demirel to give Grand Canyon a 9-3 lead with 14:19 remaining. 

A steal from Gaspar Kocevar led to a fastbreak dunk for fellow freshman DeShawn Gory, ending a scoring drought with just under 12 minutes remaining in the half. The Lopes ended a long drought of their own with a layup-and-one from Jaden Henley. Demirel nailed one of two free throws on the following possession to give the Lopes a 14-5 lead with nine minutes left. Grand Canyon extended its lead to 18-7 a couple minutes later with a second chance layup. 

The Bulldogs responded with a 7-3 run, including a three from Douglas Jr. and a fastbreak dunk from center Wilson Jacques. Fresno State managed to slowly close the gap and a three from Zaon Collins cut the deficit to 26-19 heading into halftime. 

Despite the Collins three, the Bulldogs made just 7-of-30 shots from the field and 2-of-14 from beyond the arc in the first half. Grand Canyon was not much better, shooting 8-of-28 from the field and 3-of-14 from 3. They were however able to get to the charity stripe aplenty, making 7-of-12 free throw opportunities. 

Demirel opened the second half with a mid-range jumper. He followed it up with a steal leading to a fastbreak dunk for Nana Owusu-Anane. Fresno State responded with a three from the top of the key via Douglas Jr. who found himself open a couple possessions later for another three (and the foul) to bring the score to 32-28 with 15:43 left in the game. The Bulldogs extended its run to 14-2 taking a 33-32 lead with a fastbreak layup from Gory forcing a Grand Canyon timeout with 13:25 left. 

The Lopes would go on a 12-6 run of its own including a pair of dunks from Henley. Douglas Jr. ended the run with his fourth three of the game to make it a one-score game with 7:47 left in the half. Gory tied the game with a pair of flagrant (Shaw) free throws. He then took the lead with a turnaround jumper. A three from Makaih Williams gave the lead back to the Lopes. A three the next possession from Dusty Stromer made it 52-48 Grand Canyon. 

A pair of free throws from Jake Heidbreder and a full-court pass from Collins to Gory closed the gap to 58-55 with 2:20 remaining, forcing a Grand Canyon timeout. It wasn’t enough however as the Lopes closed out the Bulldogs with a 10-2 run to win 68-57. 

Gory led the Bulldogs in scoring with 19 points, his seventh straight game scoring in double figures, though his coach would still like to see more out of his rising freshman. 

‘I’ll be honest with you, I expect a lot more,” Walberg said. “That was one of [DeShawn’s] worst games of the year. I know he had 19 and 10. I thought defensively should have been a lot better than he was.”

As a team Fresno State shot 16-of-53 from three, and made just 5-23 from beyond the arc. The lone bright spot from deep was Douglas Jr. who has made 14-of-31 (45.1%) of his three-point attempts over his last six games. 

What’s next 

The Bulldogs are off until a Saturday (1/31) road matchup at noon at Air Force (3-17). Fresno State returns to the Save Mart Center on Tuesday, Feb. 3 to host UNLV) at 8 p.m.

Freshman guard DJ Stickman remains questionable to play next Saturday as he recovers from a concussion.

Recap written by Al Scott. Cover photo courtesy of Ryan Sepulveda.

Jan 24
0

Rams stave off Bulldogs upset bid

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The Fresno State women’s basketball (10-11) fell to 5-5 in conference play in a 68-55 loss to the University of Colorado (17-4) at the Save Mart Center on Jan. 24. 

The Bulldogs rank first in the Mountain West in turnovers (20.55 tpg), and that was on display as the ‘Dogs turned the ball over 18 times, which the Rams converted into 15 points. Despite that, a bright spot for the Bulldogs was the strong play from Emila Long.

“We went down to UNLV and Colorado State on that road trip we last played them, and we had three girls with the flu and [Long] was one of them—I didn’t know if she was going to play.” Head Coach Ryan McCarthy said. “Ever since then, she has been solid as a rock for us—she’s just so dynamic.”

Her backcourt mate Danae Powell also had good performance, with McCarthy adding that the two complement each other well on the court.

“Because of her shooting ability, Danae has a lot of gravity to her, and it opens up other players too,” McCathy said. “Those two have been really consistent for us this year and we’re going to need some other ladies to step up.”

This was also the sixth consecutive game McCarthy rolled out the starting lineup of Indiya Clark, Avery Watkins, and Jaisa Gamble in the front court, and Long and Powell in the back court. McCarthy values their consistency and included that they “separated themselves” from the rest of the roster.

“I don’t necessarily take a starting group and roll with them the whole year, that’s something  that’s earned in our program,” McCarthy said. “Those ladies separated themselves from the rest of the team with how consistent they’ve been playing and understanding our system. When those ladies are fresh, they’ve established that they can hang with anybody.”

Key players

Danae Powell (FS): 16 points, 5 rebounds, 1 steal, 4 turnovers.

Emilia Long (FS): 17 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 steals, 2 turnovers.

Madelyn Bragg (CSU): 18 points, 3 rebounds, 2 blocks.

Brooke Carlson (CSU): 15 points, 2 steals, 4 turnovers.

What happened

To start the game, the Rams started off hot from beyond-the-arc, going 2-2 in the opening minutes to spark an early 5-0 lead. In contrast, the Bulldogs had a lid on their basket, going scoreless upon tipoff. 

However, the Bulldogs found their footing thanks to the backcourt play of guards Emilia Long and Danae Powell—who combined for nine of the ‘Dogs 10 points. However, the outing so far for Rams guard Hanah Ronsiek—who scored eight of the Rams’ 12 points—was enough to give the Rams the 12-10 cushion heading into the second quarter.

The second quarter was a closely contested one, with both teams bringing grit to the court, but the Bulldogs would come out on top—outscoring the Rams 13-7 in the second quarter. The scoring reins were handed over to  Gamble, who scored five of the ‘Dogs’ 13 second quarter points, with four other Bulldogs contributing to the scoring column. 

For the Rams, Ronsiek cooldown from the field, only scoring a single point—but the Rams got help from three other players to add to the scoreboard. But the Bulldogs’ defense kept them in-check en route to their 23-20 lead heading into halftime. 

To open the third quarter, the Bulldogs came out slow footed on defense, allowing the Rams to score six of their 13 points in the paint early in the quarter. However, the steady play of the two seniors Gamble and Long were able to keep the Bulldogs afloat despite the 35-30 deficit. 

Still, the scoring continued to snowball for the Rams, led by guard Kloe Froebe—who scored nine of the Rams’ 28 third quarter points en route to the 48-42 Ram lead heading into the final quarter.

In the fourth quarter, Bulldog turnovers proved to be costly, as the ‘Dogs turned the ball over five times midway through the quarter. As a result, the Rams converted them into four points to add to their 58-46 lead. 

To close out the game, the Bulldogs’ rotation continued to shrink, with two players in foul trouble and Watkins fouling out. Turnovers also proved to be damaging as the Bulldogs failed to gain any momentum. All in all, it wasn’t enough as the Rams came away with the 68-55 victory. 

What’s next

The Bulldogs take a brief road trip to face the University of Wyoming (6-12) on Jan. 28, the matchup marks the second game between the Cowgirls and the ‘Dogs this season. The Bulldogs prevailed in the first game on Dec. 20 where the ‘Dogs were led by Powell, who recorded 17 points, seven rebounds, and two steals. 

The Bulldogs return to the Save Mart Center on Jan. 31 to play Air Force (8-12) at 3 p.m.

Recap written and photos courtesy of Vincent Ordonio (FSM).