2014–15 San Jose State Spartans men's basketball team

The 2014–15 San Jose State Spartans men's basketball team represented San José State University during the 2014–15 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Spartans, led by second year head coach Dave Wojcik, played their home games at the Event Center Arena and were members of the Mountain West Conference.

2014–15 San Jose State Spartans men's basketball
Conference	Mountain West Conference
Record	2–28 (0–18 MWC)
Head coach	Dave Wojcik (2nd season)
Assistant coaches	Chris Brazelton Mike Lepore Tyler Ojanen
Home arena	Event Center Arena
Seasons ← 2013–14 2015–16 →

2014–15 Mountain West Conference men's basketball standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
Boise State	14	–	4		.778			25	–	9		.735
San Diego State	14	–	4		.778			27	–	9		.750
Colorado State	13	–	5		.722			27	–	7		.794
Wyoming †	11	–	7		.611			25	–	10		.714
Utah State	11	–	7		.611			18	–	13		.581
Fresno State	10	–	8		.556			15	–	17		.469
UNLV	8	–	10		.444			18	–	15		.545
New Mexico	7	–	11		.389			15	–	16		.484
Air Force	6	–	12		.333			14	–	17		.452
Nevada	5	–	13		.278			9	–	22		.290
San Jose State*	0	–	18		.000			2	–	28		.067
*Ineligible for postseason play due to APR penalties
† 2015 MWC tournament winner

Due to APR penalties, San Jose State were ineligible for postseason tournament play, including the Mountain West tournament.

Following a 7–24 season in 2013–14, the Spartans finished the season 2–28, 0–18 in Mountain West play to finish in last place. They failed to defeat a Division I opponent.

Preseason

Departures

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Notes
Dylan Alexander	5	G	6'4"	190	Freshman	Stockton, CA	Transferred to Casper CC
D.J. Brown	1	G	6'1"	185	RS Junior	Los Angeles, CA	Graduated; transferred to Texas State
Chris Cunningham	15	F	6'9"	240	Senior	Pomona, CA	Graduated
Mike VanKirk	21	C	7'1"	240	Sophomore	Palmdale, CA	Left the team^[1]

Recruits

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes

Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Daryl Gaynor PG	Las Vegas, NV	Durango High School	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	Apr 19, 2014
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 67
Ryan Singer C	Littleton, CO	Massanutten Military Academy	6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Apr 26, 2014
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 60
Leon Bahner C	Bonn, Germany	CJD Konigswinter	6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)	N/A	May 21, 2014
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: N/A
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: –   Rivals: –
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2014 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved May 28, 2014.

Incoming transfers

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Notes
Jordan Baker	1	G	6'3"	180	Junior	Tempe, AZ	Transferred from Pepperdine; redshirted last season per NCAA rules.
Ivo Basor	10	F	6'9"	230	Junior	Watsonville, CA	Junior college transfer from Monterey Peninsula.
Princeton Onwas	23	G	6'6"	215	Junior	Houston, TX	Transferred from Utah. Under NCAA transfer rules, Onwas will redshirt this season and will have one year of remaining eligibility.
Frank Rogers	14	F	6'9"	230	Junior	Salinas, CA	Transferred from San Francisco; redshirted last season per NCAA rules.

NCAA academic sanctions

Under previous head coach George Nessman, San Jose State reported five consecutive years of rising four-year average Academic Progress Rate (APR) scores, including a program-best 940 in the 2011–12 season (because of a perfect one-year 1000 score).^[2] However, the APR fell below 930 for the 2012–13 season, Nessman's last as head coach. As a result, the NCAA imposed sanctions on the San Jose State men's basketball program in April 2014. These sanctions included:^[3]

• A postseason ban for this season, including from the MWC tournament;
• Replacing four hours of basketball practice with four hours of academic activities;
• One fewer day of basketball-related activities a week.

Athletic director Gene Bleymaier stated in response to the sanctions: "Last year, we were faced with a situation that needed to be dealt with in a major fashion. The coaching staff was not retained, and several players were not invited back for the 2013-14 season. Only four players returned from the 2012-13 team.^[3]

Roster

2014–15 San Jose State Spartans men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown G 0 Rashad Muhammad 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 170 lb (77 kg) So Bishop Gorman HS Las Vegas, NV F 2 Jaleel Williams 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Sr Ellison HS Killeen, TX F 4 Brandon Mitchell 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 215 lb (98 kg) So Ridgeway HS Memphis, TN G 5 Darryl Gaynor II 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 165 lb (75 kg) Fr Durango HS Las Vegas, NV C 10 Ivo Basor (W) 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Jr Watsonville HS Monterey Peninsula CC Watsonville, CA G 11 Danny Mahoney (W) 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Fr Serra HS San Mateo, CA G 21 Jalen James   6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 170 lb (77 kg) So La Lumiere School Chicago, IL G 22 Devante Wilson     6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Sr Muskogee HS Lee CC Muskogee, OK G 23 Princeton Onwas (I)   6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Jr Seven Lakes HS Utah Houston, TX F 24 Ryan Singer 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Fr Massanutten Military Academy Littleton, CO C 25 Leon Bahner   6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Fr CJD Christophorusschule Königswinter Bonn, Germany	Head coach Dave Wojcik (Loyola) Assistant coach(es) Chris Brazelton (Fresno State) Mike Lepore (Wake Forest) Tyler Ojanen (California Baptist) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on   Injured   Current redshirt

Suspensions and dismissals

Coach Dave Wojcik announced on December 13, 2014 that five players were suspended indefinitely due to violating team rules: Jordan Baker, Rashad Muhammad, Matt Pollard, Frank Rogers, and Jaleel Williams. As a result, two San Jose State football players—wide receiver Tyler Winston and tight end Andrew Vollert—joined the roster temporarily.^[4] Vollert and Winston became the first San Jose State football players since the 1988–89 season to have played football and basketball the same season. The last time that happened followed the walkout of 10 basketball players in protest over alleged verbal abuse by coach Bill Berry, who was fired after the season.^[5]

Five days after the five players were suspended, associate head coach Chris Brazelton was placed on paid administrative leave.^[6] Ultimately, Muhammad and Williams were reinstated on January 3, 2015.^[7] Baker and Rogers were dismissed from the team, and Pollard transferred.^[8]

Injuries

On December 3, 2014, Jalen James suffered a season-ending ankle injury.^[9] Six days later, Leon Bahner was diagnosed with the same injury and was also sidelined the rest of the season.^[10] Devante Wilson did not play at all in the season due to injury.^[8]

Schedule

Date time, TV	Opponent	Result	Record	Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
11/02/2014* 4:00 pm	Cal State East Bay	W 84–65		Event Center Arena (1,196) San Jose, CA
11/08/2014* 1:00 pm	Notre Dame de Namur	W 65–58		Event Center Arena (1,172) San Jose, CA
Regular season
11/14/2014* 5:00 pm	Bethesda	W 67–44	1–0	Event Center Arena (1,078) San Jose, CA
11/16/2014* 1:00 pm	Portland	L 68–73 ^OT	1–1	Event Center Arena (1,453) San Jose, CA
11/19/2014* 7:00 pm	Pepperdine	L 44–63	1–2	Event Center Arena (1,358) San Jose, CA
11/22/2014* 2:00 pm	at Cal State Fullerton	L 66–70	1–3	Titan Gym (1,092) Fullerton, CA
11/27/2014* 8:00 pm, ESPN2	vs. Washington Wooden Legacy quarterfinals	L 56–78	1–4	Titan Gym (2,241) Fullerton, CA
11/28/2014* 6:00 pm, ESPN3	vs. Western Michigan Wooden Legacy consolation round	L 60–79	1–5	Titan Gym (N/A) Fullerton, CA
11/30/2014* 4:30 pm, ESPN3	vs. Princeton Wooden Legacy 7th place game	L 54–69	1–6	Honda Center (N/A) Anaheim, CA
12/03/2014* 7:00 pm	at UC Davis	L 56–70	1–7	The Pavilion (1,965) Davis, CA
12/06/2014* 7:00 pm	Santa Clara Rivalry	L 50–61	1–8	Event Center Arena (2,123) San Jose, CA
12/09/2014* 7:00 pm	Saint Katherine	W 74–63	2–8	Event Center Arena (1,194) San Jose, CA
12/13/2014* 7:00 pm	Seattle	L 38–54	2–9	Event Center Arena (1,415) San Jose, CA
12/21/2014* 4:00 pm, P12N	at Washington State	L 53–82	2–10	Beasley Coliseum (1,604) Pullman, WA
12/31/2014 6:00 pm	at Utah State	L 33–61	2–11 (0–1)	Smith Spectrum (8,491) Logan, UT
01/03/2015 7:00 pm	Wyoming	L 59–64	2–12 (0–2)	Event Center Arena (1,188) San Jose, CA
01/07/2015 6:00 pm	at Air Force	L 56–78	2–13 (0–3)	Clune Arena (971) Colorado Springs, CO
01/10/2015 7:00 pm	at UNLV	L 40–74	2–14 (0–4)	Thomas & Mack Center (12,623) Paradise, NV
01/14/2015 7:00 pm	Fresno State Rivalry	L 62–73	2–15 (0–5)	Event Center Arena (1,091) San Jose, CA
01/17/2015 7:00 pm	Colorado State	L 41–70	2–16 (0–6)	Event Center Arena (1,226) San Jose, CA
01/21/2015 7:00 pm, RTRM	at Boise State	L 36–86	2–17 (0–7)	Taco Bell Arena (4,219) Boise, ID
01/28/2015 7:00 pm	Air Force	L 52–66	2–18 (0–8)	Event Center Arena (2,045) San Jose, CA
01/31/2015 5:00 pm, RTRM	at New Mexico	L 41–67	2–19 (0–9)	The Pit (14,358) Albuquerque, NM
02/04/2015 7:00 pm	at Fresno State Rivalry	L 63–81	2–20 (0–10)	Save Mart Center (5,550) Fresno, CA
02/07/2015 3:00 pm	Nevada	L 57–60	2–21 (0–11)	Event Center Arena (1,085) San Jose, CA
02/14/2015 3:00 pm, RTRM	at Wyoming	L 60–77	2–22 (0–12)	Arena-Auditorium (7,870) Laramie, WY
02/18/2015 7:00 pm, RTRM	Utah State	L 54–76	2–23 (0–13)	Event Center Arena (1,311) San Jose, CA
02/21/2015 7:00 pm, ESPN3	San Diego State Rivalry	L 56–74	2–24 (0–14)	Event Center Arena (3,477) San Jose, CA
02/25/2015 6:00 pm	at Colorado State	L 56–72	2–25 (0–15)	Moby Arena (4,924) Fort Collins, CO
02/28/2015 7:00 pm	at Nevada	L 51–62	2–26 (0–16)	Lawlor Events Center (5,325) Reno, NV
03/04/2015 7:00 pm, RTRM	Boise State	L 51–68	2–27 (0–17)	Event Center Arena (1,088) San Jose, CA
03/07/2015 7:00 pm, ESPN3	UNLV	L 58–71	2–28 (0–18)	Event Center Arena (2,106) San Jose, CA
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Pacific Time.

References

1. "Verbal Commits | Mike van Kirk Player Profile, Highlights, Offers, Twitter".
2. Durkin, Jimmy (April 1, 2014). "San Jose State men's basketball expects APR sanctions". San Jose Mercury News. Retrieved March 20, 2015.
3. "Men's Basketball Will Incur Anticipated NCAA APR Sanctions For 2014-15". San Jose State Spartans. April 1, 2015. Retrieved March 20, 2015.
4. Durkin, Jimmy (December 14, 2014). "Football players become basketball players for San Jose State". San Jose Mercury News. Retrieved March 14, 2015.
5. Durkin, Jimmy (December 19, 2014). "San Jose State basketball team gets help from football players". San Jose Mercury News. Retrieved March 14, 2015.
6. Durkin, Jimmy (December 18, 2014). "San Jose State places assistant basketball coach on administrative leave". San Jose Mercury News. Retrieved March 14, 2015.
7. Durkin, Jimmy (January 3, 2015). "San Jose State men fall to Wyoming". San Jose Mercury News. Retrieved March 14, 2015.
8. Durkin, Jimmy (January 12, 2015). "Two San Jose State basketball players kicked off team". San Jose Mercury News. Retrieved March 14, 2015.
9. . San Jose State Spartans. December 6, 2014. Archived from the original on September 15, 2015. Retrieved March 17, 2015.
10. . San Jose State Spartans. December 9, 2014. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved March 17, 2015.