Welcome to Buzzin’ at the Basket, a weekly piece to provide extra insight on Sacramento State basketball aside from the usual game recaps. Every Monday you’ll see a rehash of the previous week – what went well, what didn’t and who stole the spotlight and what’s ahead. Let’s jump in.
Sac State kicked off its 2024-25 season with a 62-point thumping over the Cal Maritime Keelhaulers at home, and a close loss to the Fresno State Bulldogs on the road.
The Keehaulers compete in a lower level of competition than Sac State, so that win should be taken with a grain of salt, but the Hornets showed they’re going to at the very least be a competitive bunch in the game against Fresno State.
Bench mob
Too much depth is a good problem to have in basketball and Sac State has hinted at having a deeper team than some expected so far.
The Hornets’ bench scored 51 of their 104 points over the Keehaulers and 30 of their 57 against the Bulldogs. That could be head coach Michael Czepil still tinkering with the rotations, but it’s a positive sign nonetheless.
Junior guard Julian Vaughns burst onto the scene against Fresno State after not playing in the home-opener. He showed a microwave scoring ability, something every good second-unit needs, dropping 11 points in just 10 minutes of action in the first half and totaling 17.
Sac State’s outside shooting has been solid and freshman guard Lachlan Brewer has played a large part in that. Brewer is averaging nine points a contest in just over 12 minutes a game off the bench, hitting 4-of-6 from three.
Sac State got more production than normal out of its freshman for a mid-major last year, and they may have struck gold again with Brewer.
Two of those freshmen who wound up playing valuable minutes for Sac State last season were, the now sophomores, guard Bailey Nunn and forward Bowyn Beatty.
Nunn was the second-best three-point shooter last year, and Beatty was the fourth-best scorer of all returners coming into this season. Despite coming off the bench this season, they’re both top-five in minutes.
Neither have quite found their scoring groove yet, but if that happens, this unit could prove to be even more dangerous.
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Get to the line and convert
The only area Cal Maritime outperformed Sac State was free throw shooting. The Keehaulers converted 12-of-19 from the line, while the Hornets were 7-of-14.
It didn’t matter much given the outcome of the game, but was a glaring problem against Fresno State. The Bulldogs were 14-of-19 from the charity stripe, while Sac State went to the line just once, going 1-of-2.
Having a balanced scoring attack is important, and part of that is being able to draw fouls, slow down the game and get to the line for easier baskets. Czpeil said he’d like to see his team play with more force in attacking and cutting to allow that to happen.
“We’ll just keep doubling down on what we want our habits to be,” Czepil said.
The Hornets have attempted 30 or more threes in each of their first two games. It’d be nice to see them find ways to get the ball to their big men in the paint more often, particularly senior forward Jacob Holt, who has feasted around the basket and at the line with his physicality.
Holt was second in free throw attempts last season, despite being ninth in minutes.
Player of the week
There are a few players that qualify, but given the uncertainty going into the season in the scoring department, senior guard EJ Neal gets the nod.
Neal stuffed the stat sheet in game one, posting a game-high 16 points, four threes, five rebounds, five assists, two blocks and two steals.
A less well-rounded performance ensued for Neal at Fresno State, but he still made an impact. The Idaho transfer drained three straight triples in less than two minutes in the first half, which was the bulk of an 11-1 run.
Neal also does what won’t show up in the stat sheet; he said he prides himself on bringing the energy night in and night out.
“People are like, ‘Man you talk a lot,’” Neal said. “I tell them I’ve been talking like this since I was a freshman. I just feel like it brings an extra level of intensity.”
You’ll never see him take a play off, and will always see him being vocal, whether it’s with his team or the other. Every successful basketball team needs a guy like EJ Neal.
This week at a glance
Sac State will size up the Big West Conference this week with matchups against the UC San Diego Tritons and Cal State Northridge Matadors.
The Tritons, who recently made the conversion from Division II to Division I, will host Sac State on Tuesday, Nov. 12. This matchup marks the fourth consecutive year they’ve faced off, with UCSD holding a 2-1 advantage.
UCSD opened its season with a 63-58 loss to San Diego State and a double-digit win over Pepperdine.
Last season was the Triton’s best in Division I, boasting a 21-12 record, factoring into their third-place ranking in conference preseason polls despite losing talent to the transfer portal.
Their go-to bucket-getter, senior guard/forward Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones, is a Preseason All-Big West selection, and will have to be a point of emphasis for Sac State.
The Matadors visit The Nest on Saturday, Nov. 16 in one of the Hornets’ two remaining home games this month. Northridge holds a record of 1-1 in the young season, including a respectable road loss to St. Bonaventure and a win over Le Moyne.
CSUN was ranked sixth out of 11 teams in the preseason polls after a turnaround season that saw them boost their win total by 12. They are led by second-year head coach Andy Newman and senior forward Keonte Jones, who was a Preseason All-Big West selection.
