Santa Cruz Warriors Fall To Salt Lake City, 104-102

SALT LAKE CITY, UT – The Santa Cruz Warriors (1-4) lost to the Salt Lake City Stars (1-2) Wednesday night in the final seconds of regulation, 104-102.

The Warriors found a 21-0 run during the second quarter and went into halftime with an eleven-point lead, 61-50. Warriors forward Axel Toupane had 18 first half points (6-10 FG) and seven rebounds.

Salt Lake City opened the second half strong and cut the lead to one-point, 67-66, to force a Santa Cruz timeout. Santa Cruz held on to the lead until the final two minutes of regulation when the Stars tied the game, 100-100 with 1:13 to play. The Stars took their first lead of the second half with 0.06 seconds left and won their first game of the Showcase Cup.

Toupane finished the night with 24 points and ten rebounds. Golden State Warriors two-way guard Jeff Dowtin Jr added 17 points and eight rebounds. Quinndary Weatherspoon made his debut after returning from injury and scored 13 points off the bench.

The Stars had three players on assignment from the Utah Jazz (Udoka Azubuike, Jared Butler, and Elijah Hughes). Butler led all scorers with 30 points and added six rebounds.

Santa Cruz will stay in Salt Lake for one more game against the Stars on Friday, November 19 at 6:00 p.m. PST. For more information on the Santa Cruz Warriors, visit santacruzbasketball.com or call (831) 713-4400.