Stellar Shooting Sees Santa Cruz Warriors Stun The Austin Spurs, 119-103

SANTA CRUZ, CA - The Santa Cruz Warriors (10-6) led wire-to-wire to overpower the Austin Spurs (10-6), 119-103, at Kaiser Permanente Arena on Friday night.

    The Warriors offense was spearheaded by forwards Blake Hinson and Javan Johnson, who combined for 57 points. Hinson finished with a career-high 29 points and 11 rebounds while shooting a career-high 7-of-9 from behind the arc, while Johnson followed closely behind with 28 points and five rebounds on 6-of-10 three-point shooting. Guard Yuri Collins earned his sixth double-double of the season with 19 points, 13 assists, and nine rebounds. Forward Donta Scott recorded 14 points and seven rebounds and guard Marcus Burk contributed 13 points and three rebounds off the bench.

    Guard Malachi Flynn led Austin in scoring with 29 points and seven rebounds, and guard Jamaree Bouyea followed close behind with 20 points, five assists, and four rebounds. Forwards Quinton Rose and Kyle Rode combined for 23 points off the bench – Rose finished with 12 points, four steals, and two rebounds, and Rode notched 11 points and two rebounds. Two-way guard David Duke Jr. rounded out the Spurs’ scoring effort with 10 points and three rebounds.  

    The Warriors were off to a hot start from tip-off, connecting on their first five shot attempts to take an early 10-4 lead two minutes into the contest. Hinson shot 3-of-4 from three-point range to extend the Santa Cruz lead to 13 points with 4:29 remaining in the opening frame. Eight offensive rebounds led to seven second chance points for the Spurs, but 11 points apiece from Johnson and Hinson in the quarter gave the Sea Dubs a 34-24 edge after 12 minutes of action. The Santa Cruz offense continued to gel seamlessly in the second quarter as the Warriors exploded on a 16-0 run to take a 30-point lead, 63-33, with 4:02 left in the half. The Spurs fought hard to regain their footing, but a monstrous dunk from Hinson capped off a career-high 25-point half and served as the exclamation point on a dominating two quarters of play that gave the Sea Dubs a firm 75-48 lead at the break.

    Neither side gave an inch in the third quarter as both teams were unable to piece together a run of more than five points in the first six minutes of the frame. Six straight points from Flynn gave the Spurs their smallest margin of the quarter, but Austin continued to trail the Sea Dubs, 100-74, with less than two minutes to play in the period. Thirteen third-quarter points from Collins minimized Austin’s opportunities, and the Warriors headed into the fourth quarter ahead, 107-79. The Spurs began their counterattack in the final quarter, clawing back with a 16-2 run to cut their deficit to 114-98 with 4:28 left to go. Santa Cruz refused to give any more ground to the visiting team, and the Warriors shut down the comeback attempt through the final buzzer to secure a 119-103 victory. 

    The Santa Cruz Warriors will host the Austin Spurs again tomorrow night, Saturday, February 8 for the second half of their back-to-back series. 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.