Santa Cruz Warriors Fall To Salt Lake City Stars, 110-105

SANTA CRUZ, CA – The Santa Cruz Warriors (7-4) fell to the Salt Lake City Stars (6-6), 110-105, on Sunday afternoon at Kaiser Permanente Arena in front of a sellout crowd.

Two-way guard Lester Quinones scored 17 points and collected four rebounds. Centers Jayce Johnson and Usman Garuba, on a two-way contract with Golden State, both notched their third double-double of the season, with Johnson contributing 17 points and 12 rebounds and Garuba following closely behind with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Guards Kendric Davis and Jerome Robinson rounded out the scoring with 15 points apiece.

The Stars were led by combo guard/forward Romeo Langford, who shot an efficient 11-for-15 to end the game with 25 points. Guard Brice Sensabaugh, on assignment from the Utah Jazz, contributed 18 points and four assists, and guard Taevion Kinsey added 16 points in the Stars’ road win.

The first quarter saw seven lead changes and six tied scores as both teams battled for the upper hand, with Santa Cruz eventually coming out on top to end the frame with a 35-27 advantage. After a closely contested second period, Salt Lake City hit consecutive three-pointers in the final minute to give the Stars a 60-53 lead heading into the break. 

The Stars managed to pull ahead in the third quarter and built an 11-point advantage with four minutes left to play, but back-to-back three-pointers from forward Javan Johnson narrowed the gap and ended the period with a score of 85-82. Santa Cruz fought back to reclaim the lead at the start of the final frame, but their defensive efforts were unable to stop Salt Lake City’s momentum and the visitors handed the Warriors their second home loss of the season with a final score of 110-105.

    The Santa Cruz Warriors will face the South Bay Lakers on Tuesday, December 12 at 7pm at the UCLA Health Training Center in El Segundo, CA. In addition, the team has officially announced a temporary name change to the "Santa Cruz Surfers" for their upcoming game on March 15 against the G League Ignite. As part of this special event, fans can look forward to exclusive giveaways and merchandise that honor the rich history of surfing and surf culture in Santa Cruz. Fans will also get an opportunity to bid on the limited-edition Santa Cruz Surfers-themed jerseys that the players will don for the game. For more information and to secure tickets or merchandise, please visit santacruzbasketball.com.