1/31 - GEORGE FOX 78, WHITMAN 71: Bruins Have Happy Homecoming with NWC Win over Whitman
NEWBERG, Ore. - Mark Gayman and Scott Szalay posted double-doubles and the George Fox University Bruins nailed 84.6% of their free throws, many of them late in the game to protect a lead, as the Bruins picked up their first Northwest Conference men's basketball win of the season 78-71 over the Whitman College Saturday night here at Miller Gym in the Wheeler Sports Center.
With their largest crowd of the season on hand - some 1,300 for Homecoming - the Bruins finally got the proverbial conference monkey off their backs by doing the not-so-little things needed for a win, such as cutting down the turnovers (only 12 to 14 for Whitman), hitting the boards (a 44-35 rebound advantage, including 16 offensive), and sinking the freebies (22-26, including 10-11 in the final three minutes).
Doing those things was necessary in a game that was close throughout, neither team holding a double-digit lead until the final minute. There were 11 lead changes in the first half alone, which ended, appropriately enough, in a 36-36 deadlock.
There were three more lead changes early in the second half before the Bruins took the lead for good 46-45 on a Mark Gayman layup with 16:37 to play. Scott Szalay's layup with 7:46 to go gave the home team its biggest lead to that point at 61-53 before the Missionaries battled back, cutting the gap to a single digit at 63-62 on a pair of Greg Ricker free throws with 5:12 to go.
Aaron Schmick answered with a 3-pointer for George Fox, Szalay hit two free throws, and Chris Parker's three-point play with 1:43 left put the Bruins up 71-64, and then the Bruins' free-throw shooting took over to seal the win. Ben Melvin's free throw with 13 seconds left gave George Fox the largest lead of the game at 78-68 before Will Cale hit a 3-pointer with two ticks left.
Gayman finished with 16 points and a career-high 17 rebounds, and Szalay chipped in with 15 points and 10 boards. Melvin helped the cause with 17 points and Schmick tallied 15. Bryan Wadlow and Szalay had 3 assists each. Ricker scored 21 points and had 6 assists to lead the Missionaries, while Cale scored 16 and Casey Nelson added 10. Cale was 6-6 from the field, including 4 3-pointers - but missed his only free throw. Jacob Pounds was the top rebounder for Whitman with 11.
George Fox improved to 5-12 overall and 1-7 in the conference, while Whitman slipped to 6-11 overall and 2-6 in the league.
The Bruins head for Tacoma next weekend to start the second half of conference play, first visiting the University of Puget Sound on Friday (Feb. 6). The Missionaries travel to Salem to take on Willamette University Friday. Both games are at 8:00 p.m., following women's games at 6:00 p.m.