Entering the 2024 offseason, Sacramento State men's basketball was met with a fleet of uncertainty. The Hornets said goodbye to their top four scorers and had just one returner who averaged more than 5 points per game, leaving a glaring void on their roster going forward.
That highest scoring returner was senior forward
Jacob Holt - a former transfer from Santa Clara who acted as a rotational big man off the bench last season.
Holt's combination of size and athleticism helped him make the second most free throws and haul in the second most rebounds on the team despite being eighth in minutes - making him the most likely player to help fill that void. Now, after averaging just 6.7 points per game a season ago, he's transformed into one of the best players in the Big Sky Conference.
"This is the first year where I felt like I deserved it," Holt said. "I felt like it was to the point where now I'm just showing off. I've never felt nervous in terms of my ability, I have full belief in myself."
To say there were signs of this senior season surge is evident, but for it to happen to the degree in which it has - has likely come as a surprise to many, except for Holt. The difference between this season and the rest of his young playing career is simple: confidence and trust, both of which have come by way of the coaching staff.
"We went to Australia (in June) and I had a great two or three game stretch where the confidence really started to build," Holt said. "And just knowing that you have the trust from the coaches with the ability to go out there and play free - that's huge."
Fast forward to now, 18 games into the 2024-25 season, and Holt is the second best bucket getter in the Big Sky on a points per game basis, averaging 16.9. His current tally of 305 points puts him on pace to be a top-five single-season scorer in Sac State's Div. I era.
In his 35-point outing against Idaho two weeks ago, which counted for the highest single-game point total in the conference this season, he went 17-for-21 from the charity stripe - new Hornet Div. I era records for free throws made and attempted. His seven 20-point outings are second in the conference only to Northern Arizona's Trenton McLaughlin, who's the third best scorer in the nation.
Like last season, where Holt led the team in plus/minus, he's also been incredibly efficient. Despite ranking top five in the Big Sky in points and rebounds, Holt is averaging just the 22nd-most minutes in the conference at 28.4 per game and is one of three players to have 300 points while shooting over 50% from the field.
The 21-year-old's career trajectory is one that gradually grew to be. A native of Canada, from Ladner, Delta, a farm town suburb of Vancouver where hockey reigns supreme, Holt deferred his parents desire to play volleyball and elected to devote himself to basketball.
"It's funny, both my parents played volleyball, and were huge volleyball people," Holt said. "They played indoor, beach and actually met playing beach volleyball. As a kid in Vancouver, they always wanted me to play."
Whether in the front yard at a young age, or the Steve Nash recreational league where his mom was his coach - basketball was always in Holt's fortune. So much so that he endured a four-hour round-trip commute by himself to attend Vancouver College - an all-boys preparatory school with a reputation for its standout athletics - from eighth grade on.
"I had to travel two hours to school every day, so I knew how to commute and I knew how to be independent," Holt said. "They really took their sports seriously and did a great job of growing me into who I am today."
It was there that Holt's basketball career began to blossom, both in physical stature and on court play. He was dubbed the No. 21 player in Canada according to North Pole Hoops and grew from 6 '0 in eighth grade to 6' 9 in 11th grade, which is when he said his recruitment to play college basketball in the United States gained traction.
He received calls from Power Four schools Creighton and Iowa but COVID travel restrictions prevented in-person workouts, which is a necessary hurdle for many larger programs. Fielding official offers from Boise State and two-time NBA MVP Steve Nash's alma mater, Santa Clara, Holt said he came to California for school in part because of a phone call from Nash.
His time at Santa Clara was well spent, playing sparsely in his freshman and sophomore campaign in the West Coast Conference and facing teams like national powerhouse Gonzaga and highly regarded Saint Mary's. Holt also played with Jalen Williams of the Oklahoma City Thunder and Brandin Podziemski of the Golden State Warriors; both of whom he learned a lot from.
After his two-year stint in Santa Clara, he transferred to Sacramento State, a decision he felt best fit his playing style and one that would end up being an eventual shoe-in fit, particularly with the coaching staff.
"I'm not afraid to say it - Zep is the best experience that I've ever had with a coach," Holt said. "You never ask yourself, 'does he like me?', but at the same time he's straight up and he'll tell you how it is and that's what I love about him. He'll give you the honest truth and that's what you need."
That confidence - instilled by the staff and through the trust he now has in himself from years of hard work - has made the world of a difference.
Coming from Canada, a country rich in basketball talent, Holt is currently the fourth-best Canadian scorer in Div. I basketball. He recently became the first Hornet since the 2022-23 season to win Big Sky Conference Player of the Week accolades, and is coming off a game with a career-high four blocks, bringing his yearly total to 17 - good for third in the Big Sky.
So far in conference play, Holt is averaging 18.6 points, 8.6 rebounds and 1.6 blocks. His four double-doubles rank in the top 100 in the nation, and third in the Big Sky, while coming up just one rebound shy in two separate games.
After graduation this year, Holt hopes to get a contract from an NBA team or play overseas, which is certainly feasible. He said adding the dimension of a three-point shot to his game - 22 made so far this season compared to just four last season - will bode well when that time comes.
Although earning all-Big Sky accolades would be an honor, Holt said he would much prefer another Big Sky Conference Tournament run with his team in Boise, Idaho come March.
"It's my senior year and I know this is my last year in college," Holt said. "I knew I had to give it my all in terms of I have no backup plan."
