Santa Cruz Warriors Eclipse The Suns With 14-Point Second-Half Comeback, Defeating The Valley 115-113

TEMPE, AZ - After trailing by 14 points at halftime, the Santa Cruz Warriors (6-1) battled their way back in the second half and defeated the Valley Suns (4-4), 115-113, at Mullett Arena on Monday night to close out their seven-game road trip.

Two-way center Quinten Post tied his career high with 30 points and grabbed 11 rebounds to record his fourth double-double of the regular season. Forward Kevin Knox II finished with 22 points, 10 rebounds, and four assists, and guard Yuri Collins recorded a career-high 22 points, nine assists, five rebounds, and two steals. Santa Cruz had a pair of double-digit performances off the bench, with forward Blake Hinson tallying 13 points and six rebounds and forward Donta Scott notching 11 points and five rebounds. 

Two-way guard TyTy Washington Jr. led the Suns with 30 points, seven rebounds, and five assists. Two-way guard Collin Gillespie and forward Tyrese Samuel both recorded double-doubles for the Valley as Gillespie finished with 12 points, 11 assists, and eight rebounds while Samuel contributed 15 points and 10 rebounds off the bench. Forward Moses Wood, center Mamadi Diakite, and two-way forward Jalen Bridges rounded out the Valley’s scoring effort, scoring 17 points, 15 points, and 12 points, respectively. 

Post and Knox handled the brunt of the Warriors’ offensive workload to open the contest, scoring 16 of the first 19 points for Santa Cruz to take a 19-14 edge with just over five minutes remaining in the first frame. Despite allowing an average of 32.5 points per quarter in last night’s match-up, the Warriors stepped up on defense tonight to hold the Suns to just 22 points on 2-of-11 three-point shooting in the first quarter. Santa Cruz rounded out the opening frame with a 10-3 run – spearheaded by a pair of offensive boards and buckets from center Seth Maxwell – to take a 31-22 advantage into the next period. Santa Cruz’s early double-digit lead in the second quarter was short-lived as the Suns mounted a 15-2 run over the course of four minutes to narrowly pull ahead, 44-40. Foul trouble for the Warriors limited the team’s offensive success in the second quarter as the Valley stayed in stride, scoring 47 points in the period to take a 69-55 advantage into the locker room at the break. 

Post scored an efficient 10 points in the opening six minutes of the second half to help the Sea Dubs orchestrate a 17-4 run, erasing the Valley’s advantage and tying the game at 77 points apiece. The remainder of the third quarter was a back-and-forth affair as the game saw four ties and three lead changes. After evening the score at 84 with 3:35 left in the third frame, the Sea Dubs held the Suns to just two points and claimed a 94-86 edge heading into the final 12 minutes of the game. Similar to the third quarter, the Valley quickly closed the gap, tying the game at 101-101 with just under nine minutes left in the game. Six straight points from Washington Jr. gave the Suns a five-point advantage with 5:23 remaining – their largest lead of the final frame. From that point forward, the Suns shot a combined 1-of-12 from the floor before Knox drained a three-pointer from the top of the key to give the Sea Dubs a two-point lead with 47 seconds left on the clock. The Valley had a pair of three-point looks to reclaim the lead but were unable to connect, and the Warriors closed out their seven-game road trip with a 115-113 victory over the Valley Suns.

The Warriors will return to Santa Cruz for their regular season home opener against the Mexico City Capitanes on Friday, January 17, at 7:00 PM at Kaiser Permanente Arena. Stay up to date with the latest Santa Cruz Warriors news, scores, and exclusive content by downloading the official Santa Cruz Warriors app for iOS and Android. Fans interested in securing the best seats at the lowest price are encouraged to call (831) 713-4400, email scwtickets@warriors.com, or visit santacruzbasketball.com for more information.