Harding scores 31 in debut as Weber St. beats San Jose St.

Nov 16, 2018, 04:01 am

BIMINI, Bahamas -- Jerrick Harding was stellar in his season debut, scoring 31 points to lead Weber State to an 85-77 victory over San Jose State on Thursday night in the first round of the Junkanoo Jam.

Harding, who missed the first two games with an ankle sprain, sank 10 of 20 shots from the field, including 4 of 10 from 3-point range, and added eight rebounds for the Wildcats (2-1). Cody John scored 16 on 6-of-10 shooting for the Weber State, who will also play Central Michigan and Cal State Bakersfield in the round-robin tournament.

Christian Anigwe scored 20 points and grabbed 13 rebounds, including six on the offensive end, for the Spartans (1-2), who are playing outside the U.S. for the first time in program history. Michael Steadman had 12 points and seven boards, while Brae Ivey and Craig Lecesne scored 11 and 10, respectively.

San Jose State's only lead was 1-0 on a Seneca Knight free throw. Zach Braxton's layup put the Wildcats ahead and they led for the final 39:06 of the game.

The victory was the 249th for Weber State coach Randy Rahe -- already the career wins leader in the Big Sky Conference -- in his 13th season with the Wildcats.