"Sacramento State concluded play at the 38th-annual William Jones Cup in Tawian with a 71-51 victory over Japan. Today marked the eighth and final game of the tournament for the Hornets, which was played over nine days at Hsingchuang Gymnasium.
Making its first-ever trip to Taiwan, Sacramento State finished the event with a 3-5 record. Of the Hornets' eight opponents, seven were national teams and one was a professional team from the Philippines. In fact, it was the Philippines which won the tournament with a perfect 8-0 record, followed by South Korea (6-2), Iran (5-3), Chinese Taipei A (5-3), Sacramento State (3-5), Japan (3-5), Egypt (3-5), Chinese Taipei B (2-6) and India (1-7).
Sacramento State's results from the tournament included 62-60 win over India, 63-48 loss to South Korea, 70-59 loss to Iran, 88-69 loss to the Philippines, 81-60 win over Chinese Taipei B, 70-63 loss to Egypt, 86-71 loss to Chinese Taipei A and today's 71-51 victory over Japan.
In today's win, the Hornets outscored Japan in every quarter, eventually using a 15-4 run to start the third quarter and break open what had been a 29-23 halftime lead. Sacramento State had 10 steals in the game, held a 43-30 advantage in the rebounding department and limited Japan to .288 shooting (17-59) from the field and .207 (6-29) from the 3-point line. Sacramento State shot .420 (29-69) from the field and .261 (6-23) from the 3-point line.
Hornet forward Justin Strings had a game-high 23 points on 9-of-17 shooting from the field and 3-for-3 from the free throw line. He buried a pair of 3-pointers and also secured 10 rebounds, a game-high five of which came on the offensive glass. He was joined in double figures by guard Marcus Graves who finished with 11 points and a game-best six assists.
Forward Nick Hornsby had eight points, three steals and a game-high 11 rebounds in 30 minutes of play, center Eric Stuteville had nine points and three rebounds, forward Joshua Patton finished with six points and three rebounds and swingman Grant Dressler had seven rebounds. Guards Izayah Mauriohooho-Le'afa had three points, four rebounds and two assists, Jeff Wu had four points and two steals, Jiday Ugbaja added a pair of steals and Trevis Jackson had three points and two assists.
Sacramento State used 11 different players in today's win, and 13 of the team's 14 members on the roster played during the tournament. That included freshman swingman Chibueze Jacobs who played his first game today after missing the first seven games with a hamstring injury. Jacobs finished with a rebound in three minutes of play. The only player who did not play during the tournament was freshman guard George Dancer who has a knee injury.
Wu, who is a sophomore guard and was born and raised in Taiwan, wrote the trip's final blog and that is included below. Throughout the tournament, all 14 players on the roster and head coach Brian Katz blogged about their experiences in Taiwan. Links to each of those blogs and game recaps can be found below this story.
DAY 10 PLAYER BLOGS (Sunday, July 31)
Sophomore Jeff Wu
Today is our last day in Taiwan, and although this was an amazing trip, everyone seems excited to get back to Sacramento and get some rest. This has been such a wonderful experience for everyone on the team, and it was a blessing for me to come back home and play in front of the Taiwanese fans! I left Taiwan as a 15-year old kid chasing my American basketball dream, and I never thought I would come home with my second family and play in the Jones Cup, an event I grew up watching on TV. I still find it hard to believe how everything has happened in this past week.
Before I came back to Taiwan, I already knew and expected that the people, fans, and media were going to pay attention to me and watch my performance in the tournament. Even though I felt prepared for the games, it was hard to play initially due to the pressure I put on myself. During the first part of the tournament, I didn't perform to my standards because I was too worried about trying to impress everyone. I began to doubt myself, but Coach Katz said to me, "I believe in you and you are a winner, I've known that since the first time I saw you play". Also, Nick (Hornsby) and Justin (Strings) kept encouraging me on the court and telling me they had my back, which helped my confidence. Without all my teammates, I would not have been able to improve the way I did throughout the tournament, and I will forever be grateful to them.
As the tournament went on, our team performance got better and better. Throughout this trip, my teammates and I experienced the best of times, and will come back to the United States with an even stronger bond. My favorite part of the trip was our off day on Friday, because I got to show my teammates the city where I grew up. Being able to celebrate and share my heritage with the people I consider my second family was an experience I will never forget.
Finally, I want to thank everyone who helped make this trip possible, and the people of Taiwan who showed us love and support. Words cannot describe how much we all appreciated this opportunity. Each of us will forever cherish the memories of this trip, and it would not have happened without the support we have from the Hornet family in the United States, and now in Taiwan as well. Thank you."
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