The Spartans fell behind early and never recovered in Wednesday’s series opener, falling to the Cowboys 80-70 at the Event Center.
The Cowboys had this game from start to finish, building a comfortable 22-9 lead over the Spartans with 10:53 left in the first half.
SJSU picked up the pace, adding 12 points less than five minutes later, but continued to trail 35-12. The Spartans saved their best for the final minutes of the first, but were down by 19 at halftime. The Cowboys dominated in the paint 32-12 and outshot the Spartans 56% to 37%.
The Spartans’ offense exploded in the second half.