A triple-double by senior point guard Marcus Graves helped lead the Sacramento State men’s basketball team to a 76-52 win over Simpson University on Friday in the season opener.

The Hornets struggled to start the game, but were able to capitalize on Simpson’s 11 turnovers to take the lead at half 36-25.

In the first half, sophomore forward Ethan Esposito — who was playing his first game with the Hornets  — led the team in scoring with eight points, while Graves had seven rebounds and five assists.

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When the second half began, the Hornets began to pull away, and Graves wound up with 12 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists for the first triple-double in school history.

“It’s crazy it’s the first one,” Graves said. “I give credit to my teammates, credit to my coaches and we got the win, that is the most important thing.”

It was Graves’ first game back since missing last season with a back injury. As a junior in the 2016-17 season, Graves averaged 13.9 points and 5.3 assists per game.

“Marcus is just an all-around player, he sets the tone for our team, defensively and offensively, he’s our captain we tell him you have to have a presence out there,” said Sac State head coach Brian Katz.

Esposito led the team in points with 20 and added eight rebounds in his Hornet debut.

“I just wanted to be aggressive,” Esposito said. “I knew I had to come in and play my role, and do what I had to do and it worked and we got that win.”

The Hornets next game will be at home against Cal Poly on Nov. 16.