12/29 - WARTBURG 69, GEORGE FOX 66: Wartburg Squeezes Past Bruins in Cactus Jam Semifinals
PHOENIX, Ariz. - In a see-saw affair that saw 10 ties and 16 lead changes, it was a pair of 3-pointers by Jason Steege late in the game that enabled the Wartburg College Knights to squeeze past the George Fox University Bruins 69-66 in one semifinal duel of the Cactus Jam Division III men's basketball Tournament Monday afternoon here at Phoenix College.
George Fox, an upset 82-78 winner over Ramapo College two days earlier, fell behind 10-2 to start the contest, but rallied behind Bryan Wadlow's 12 first-half points to make it a contest. Wartburg held a slim 32-30 lead at the half, and the teams traded leads several times in the second half before Steege's clutch bombs enabled the Knights to pull away. The Bruins' Aaron Schmick hit a trey at the buzzer for the final 3-point margin.
Schmick finished with 16 points to lead the Bruins, while Wadlow and Ben Melvin scored 12 each and Mark Gayman had 11. Gayman and Scott Szalay had 7 rebounds each as the Bruins edged the Knights on the boards 30-29. Schmick and Gayman had 4 assists apiece, and Schmick made 4 steals.
Steege wound up with a game-high 17 for Wartburg, hitting 5-8 from 3-point range. Alan Johnson came off the bench to hit all 3 of his field goal attempts and 7-9 from the free throw line for 13 points, and Jordan Atchison scored 11. Atchison led the Knights with 8 rebounds and 6 assists.
George Fox slipped to 3-4 while Wartburg improved to 5-2.
The Bruins will face a familiar foe, Yamhill County rival Linfield College, in the tournament's 3rd-place game Tuesday at 2:30 p.m. In the championship game at 4:45 p.m., Wartburg will play Ohio Northern University, which romped past Linfield 79-53 in the other semifinal game.