Stanislaus men's basketball kicks off season in style

By Brian VanderBeek
bvanderbeek@modbee.com

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TURLOCK — New CSU Stanislaus assistant coach Ben Riley didn't get his job because he was bringing his former Lassen College star Jordan Stokes into the Warrior fold.

It just looked that way on Tuesday night.

The new Stanislaus team, playing for the first time under coach Larry Reynolds, showed intensity, athleticism and depth in an 89-60 victory over Cal Maritime — but none of the Warriors was more impressive than Stokes.

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"I think Ben came first on that one, but it was good that Jordan followed," Reynolds said.

The 6-feet, 3-inch senior guard from Las Vegas via Lassen and College of Idaho started the game by jumping center and winning the opening tip, then produced 17 points on six-of-seven shooting in a 16 minute effort as the Warriors cruised over the NAIA Keelhaulers.

"We've been working hard, practicing six days a week and getting after it," Stokes said. "It felt good to get the jitters out and just get a chance to play. It was good for all the guys and the coaches to be able to put it all together against another team."

This is not the first time Stokes has worked his magic in a local gym. It was his layup with 15 seconds left that capped a 15-point rally and carried Lassen over Modesto Junior College in the semifinals of the 2007 MJC Tournament.

All five Stanislaus starters shot 50 percent or better from the floor — a success rate that carried through the entire roster. Thirteen Warriors played seven or more minutes, and 11 of them reached the scoring column.

"We think one of our strengths is our depth, and that's not to say we're going to be one of the more talented teams in the conference," Reynolds said. "But for a first-year group we do have good depth and athleticism."

Stanislaus took control almost immediately against the Keelhaulers (1-5), using a 27-9 stretch of domination to take a 31-13 lead with 5:49 left in the first half. At that point in the game, nine different Stanislaus players had scored.

The lead was 42-21 at halftime, but Cal Maritime put together its only run of the game to open the second half — a 5-0 spurt to briefly pull within 16 points. But Stokes got his team going by scoring 11 points in a 132-second span, igniting a 13-2 run to a 55-28 lead.

"We came out in the second half a little lackadaisical for a couple minutes, which was disappointing," Reynolds said. "But for a first time out, especially since we didn't have any exhibition games, it was a good effort."

Julian Williams, a freshman from Natomas, led the bench effort with 10 points in 11 minutes. Overall the Warriors got 45 points from the reserves and 44 from the starting five.

Cal Maritime was led by Andrew Medeiros with 15 points. Leo Sarrade, who played at Oakdale High and Columbia College, started at center and scored two points. Johansen graduate David Prendeble scored six points off the bench for the Keelhaulers.

Stanislaus hosts American Sports University on Friday, then does not host a game again until Jan. 2.

Bee staff writer Brian VanderBeek can be reached at bvanderbeek@modbee.com or 578-2300.