As time wound down in the first half, Sacramento State freshman guard Leo Ricketts sized up his defender and went ‘full steam ahead’ to convert a buzzer-beating layup.
Laying on the floor exhausted, Ricketts’ teammates helped him up on their way to the locker room during Thursday’s matchup against Northern Colorado.
What should have been a momentum-swinging play was simply a drop in the ocean that was a 20-point Hornet deficit.
In his first career start at Sac State, Ricketts logged a game-high 40 minutes played against the conference-leading Northern Colorado Bears.
Starting guards sophomore Bailey Nunn and junior Julian Vaughns were out due to injury, according to Sacramento State Athletics, opening the door for the freshman to lead the Hornets’ offense into battle against the Bears.
“It’s been crazy,” Ricketts said. “I was gonna redshirt. I just kept working hard and doing the same things in practice to try to get better, and then the opportunity arose.”
As the Hornets came out of the locker room to start the second half, it became clear that Ricketts’ buzzer-beater was the spark their offense needed.
Sac State opened up the second half forcing their will on the defensive side of the ball, contesting the Bears’ shooters on every attempt. They were determined to muck the game up, converting turnovers into a half-leading 14 points.
RELATED: Hornets are twice baked as turnovers and fouls pile up in Idaho
After a dicey first half on both sides of the ball, the Hornets were unrecognizable on the court, outscoring the Bears 36-32 in the second half.
Underclassmen led the way for Sac State during this surge. Their newfound momentum guided them to a 7-0 run and cut the score to 57-42 in favor of the Bears, with 11:43 to go.
Orchestrated by none other than Ricketts, who contributed nine points and three steals in the second half, the Hornets showed signs of life.
After their physical defense was nowhere to be found in the first half, Sac State held the red-hot Northern Colorado offense scoreless for almost three minutes midway through the final period.
Joining in on the action were freshman forward Chudi Dioramma and freshman guard Michael Wilson, who each scored five points in the second-half resurgence.
Sac State Head coach Michael Czepil said this was a sight that he was pleased to see.
“They’re completely open and receptive,” Czepil said. “For Chudi [Dioramma], Mike [Wilson] and Ricketts to be able to perform, not just tonight but last week on the road, it’s because they’re open to being coached.”
The physicality of the Hornets’ defense slowed down Northern Colorado’s offensive barrage at the price of 21 free throw attempts, giving the Bears an easy 17 second-half points.
Northern Colorado took control of the game, as the Hornet offense began to stall. The Hornets missed four shots in a row and went nearly three minutes without scoring, until they found themselves trailing 52-72 at the 4:17 mark.
Sac State spent most of the game trying to claw their way back, but their failure to execute offensive possessions down the stretch thwarted any real chance at a comeback. They lost 77-61 and dropped their sixth game in a row.
“It’s hard,” senior forward Jacob Holt said about the losing streak. “We just have to bring it every day, to the point where we have what it takes to win.”
The Hornets return to The Nest on Saturday for a matinee matchup against Northern Arizona, before hitting the road next week.
