San Jose State routs Santa Clara to win third straight game

The Spartans dropped the first of a three-game trip to Saint Mary's but found some mojo against one of the country's best teams and used it to beat the following two opponents.

The last time the two teams met was on Dec. 5, 2015. Santa Clara beat San Jose State 78-75 in a nail-biter inside the Leavy Center. The Spartans managed to hold Jared Brownridge to just four points, but allowed Nate Kratch to kill them down low in the process. Kratch finished with a career-high 29 points on 13-of-15 shooting. Cody Schwartz hit four threes for the Spartans.

The Spartans were dressed in their yellow uniforms and had the ball first.

The Spartan defense suffocated the Broncos throughout the game. They allowed just 13-of-46 shots to drop. Santa Clara's leading scorer Jared Brownridge managed just 11 points on 2-for-11 shooting.

Brandon Mitchell hit his first three of the season to cut the Broncos' deficit to 19-13 at 8:35 in the first half. The Spartans trailed by one just a little over a minute later. San Jose State held Santa Clara scoreless for five minutes and 12 seconds. SJSU brought a 28-26 lead into the locker room at halftime.

The Spartans came out blazing into the second half. San Jose State went on an incredible 18-0 run, maintained their lead and never looked back.

San Jose State finished the game shooting 46.3 percent. The Spartans only turned the ball over five times in the second half. SJSU beat the Broncos 55-40.

With the win, the Spartans defeated the Broncos inside the Event Center for the first time since 1996. Ryan Welage and Isaiah Nichols both led in scoring with 12 points for San Jose State.

The Spartans return to action Wednesday night when they face the Montana Grizzlies. You can listen to the game on KLIV 1590 AM.