Box Score
NEWBERG, Ore. – Behind a 24-point, 21-rebound
effort by inside man Cameron Mitchell, the Willamette Bearcats
clawed their way to an 87-82 victory over the George Fox University
Bruins, avenging an earlier home-court loss to the Bruins, in
Northwest Conference men's basketball action Friday night
here at the Wheeler Sports Center's Miller Gym.
Jumpers by Robbie Kunke and Mitchell put the visitors out in front
4-0 early, but a 7-2 run by the home team, capped by a steal and
layin by Alex Stockner, put the Bruins ahead 7-6 four-and-a-half
minutes in. The Bruins twice extended their lead
to four points, the last at 15-11 in a short jumper by Bryan
O'Connell with 12 minutes left, before a 14-2 run boosted the
Bearcats back in front 25-17 with 9:21 left.
Willamette twice took 12-point leads in the first half, the last
time at 40-28 on a jumper by Kyler McClary with 3:14
remaining. Five different players scored for the
Bruins over the remainder of the period, however, as they embarked
on an 11-1 run to cut the deficit at the break to
41-39. Stockner had 11 in the first half and
McClary 13 to lead their respective teams.
The second half was a series of vignettes that would see the
Bearcats extend their lead, only to have the Bruins close the gap
with little runs of their own. One stretch in
the middle of the half saw the Bearcats take a seven-point lead
before the Bruins scored to cut it to five points six times in a
row. A three-pointer and two free throws by
Kunke boosted the Bearcats to a 10-point lead one last time at
72-62 with 7:02 to play.
A 14-6 burst over the next five minutes brought the Bruins back,
Evan Atwater's three cutting the gap to 78-76 with 2:38
left. Mitchell responded with back-to-back
layups around a Bruin turnover, however, building the margin to six
at 82-76 with 1:44 to go. Atwater hit a pair of
free throws to make it a three-point game at 85-82 with 54 second
remaining, but another Mitchell layup with 20 ticks left sealed the
Bearcats' win.
Jack Martin paced the Bruins with 18 points, hitting four
three-pointers, while Brady Strutz added a season-high 14 and
Stockner and Atwater tallied 13 apiece. Martin
also grabbed a team-high five rebounds and passed out six
assists.
In addition to Mitchell's big night, McClary added 23 points
for the Bearcats and Kunke scored 10. With
Mitchell doing the lion's share of the work, Willamette held
a decided 40-29 advantage on the boards. Kunke
had six assists.
George Fox (8-16, NWC 4-11) ends its season at home Saturday at
8:00 p.m. against Pacific Lutheran University, while Willamette
(12-10, NWC 8-7), still in the running for the fourth and final NWC
Tournament spot, hosts the 6th-ranked University of Puget Sound,
also at 8:00 p.m. Both games will follow NWC
women's games at 6:00 p.m.
