SPOKANE, Wash. – Spencer Bolte came off the bench to score a game-high 22 points, hitting 11-of-14 from the free throw line and 9-of-10 in the final 1:18, as the George Fox University Bruins stunned the third-ranked Whitworth University Pirates 89-81 in Northwest Conference men's basketball action Saturday night here at the Whitworth Fieldhouse.

George Fox improved to 14-9 on the season and 9-5 in the conference, ending a 15-game losing streak to the Pirates and holding onto sole possession of third place in the league standings.  The Bruins are one game behind second-place Whitman College and stayed a game ahead of fourth-place Lewis & Clark College and Pacific University.  Whitworth has already clinched a share of the NWC title but failed to secure the outright crown by falling to 20-3 overall and 12-2 in the league with its second straight loss, the first time in four years the Pirates have dropped consecutive league games. 

A.J. Grant snuck inside for a layup to give the Bruins an early 2-0 lead and they never trailed, but there were four ties in the first seven minutes of the game, George Fox answering each time the Pirates scored.  A three-pointer by Anthony Sanchez with 13:03 left in the half broke the final tie and started a 12-0 run that ended with Jason Martin's layup, giving George Fox a 22-10 lead with 10:20 left.

Whitworth closed to within 33-29 when Colton McCargar hit one of two from the free throw line with 2:08 to go, but Anthony Sanchez scored inside and Sean Atkins canned a pair of free throws in the final minute to give the Bruins a 37-29 halftime lead.  The Bruins shot .571 (16-28) in the first period to create their margin. 

Sanchez put back a rebound to start the second half and give the Bruins a 10-point lead again, then nailed a three to make it 42-31 at the 18:58 mark.  An 11-5 Whitworth run, capped by Wade Gebbers' three-pointer, pulled the Pirates within five at 47-42 with 15:24 remaining, but Bolte answered with a three of his own and the home team got no closer, though they never went away either. 

Leading 53-46, George Fox used a 7-0 run to take its largest lead of 14 points at 60-46 with 11:36 to play, and the gap hovered around ten points most of the rest of the game.  Bolte began his string of 9-for-10 free throws with a pair at 1:18 that gave the Bruins an 81-68 lead.  When Dustin McConnell drained a three with 38 seconds left, Whitworth had pulled within six at 83-77, but Bolte made 5-of-6 from the line in the final 35 seconds to keep the Bucs at bay.

Bolte was 5-11 from the field in leading the Bruins, who shot .527 (29-55) for the game, .474 (9-19) from three-point range, and .815 (22-27) from the line.  Grant added 20 points on 7-12 shooting, including 3-6 from downtown, and Sanchez had 19 on 6-10 field goals, 4-6 from outside the arc.  Atkins scored 12 points and a team-high seven rebounds as the Bruins won the backboard battle 34-30.  Seth Brent and Sanchez had three assists each, and Brent blocked a pair of shots.

McConnell scored 19 points to lead the Pirates, while Taylor Farnsworth scored 17 points, McCargar and Gebbers each scored 13, and George Valle finished with 10.  McConnell and McCargar each had six rebounds, while Gebbers passed out five assists and made two steals.

NEXT: George Fox goes to Tacoma next weekend for its final two regular season games, starting Friday at Pacific Lutheran University, while Whitworth goes to Linfield College Friday, both games tipping off at 8:00 p.m. ... Conference women's games will precede the men's contests at 6:00 p.m.