By Jacob Hayes

WALLA WALLA ---  The George Fox Bruins miss their chance for a road upset, falling in the final minutes to the Whitman Blues 100-94.

Recap:

Out of the gate, the Bruins were determined to redeem the tough loss they suffered almost a month ago.  Whitman pulled down the tip and hit a quick three, but the Bruins scored soon after, getting on the board with a JD Ahlstrom lay-up that preceded a Jackson Januik jumper.  The score bounced back and forth, but the play on the court favored the Blues.  The Bruins struggled with clean play, racking up seven fouls in under seven minutes, giving Whitman the bonus with 14:51 left in the half.  Nonetheless, George Fox held the lead by one, 11-10, and continued to pile it on.  Zach Sly and Levi Dalzell both had lay-ups leading to an Ahlstrom three and another Dalzell lay-up to make it 20-13.   

With 13:18 left in the half, the Blues began to make use of the extra scoring opportunities from the charity stripe and found themselves right back in the game and the momentum to take a lead of their own.  Kalu Stricklin threw down a dunk that Davon Walker followed up with a three, but the score was soon 34-25 in favor of the Blues.  The Whitman lead held at around 10 points for about five minutes, but the Bruins finished the half strong.  With 4:08 remaining, Michael Mercado-Smith hit a three with the shot clock running out that Januik succeeded with his own three.  Mercado Smith then buried another three in transition and suddenly the score was 44-47, Blues.   

Even with the momentum, the Bruins still continued to struggle with fouls, ending with a whopping 18 fouls in the first half.  This made it hard to keep the game close, let along reclaim the lead going into halftime, but Emilio Mancol scored the final four points of the half for the Bruins to keep the deficit at three, 48-51.

Out of the break, Januik tied the game with a three and Quinn Lacey put the Bruins on top with a lay-up.  The Bruins continued to push the ball and started to get the Blues on their heels, forcing fouls and extending their lead to 66-61.  Ryan Lacey and Mercado-Smith both made buckets to extend the lead.

Scoring went back and forth for the majority of the half, but the lead slowly started to wane. With 5:37 left in the half, the foul trouble from earlier in the second came back to haunt George Fox, putting the Blues on the line.  The first free throw was good, bringing the lead down 84-81, but the second missed.  However, poor boxing out from the Bruins turned into a Blues possession ending in a made three-pointer and suddenly the momentum of the game shifted.  The home crowd was back in the game and Whitman didn't look back.  After tying the game, the Blues went on a 6-0 run that the Bruins ultimately could not overcome.  Mercado-Smith made it interesting at the end, scoring eight points in the final minute, but the Blues pulled it out, 100-94.

Top Performers:   

Mercado-Smith lead the Bruins in scoring, coming of the bench for 18 points (7-12) and 4-6 from behind the arc.  Sly also played well off the bench, scoring 11 (4-8) with eight rebounds and two assists.  Januik had 16 points on 6-19 shooting with a team-high five assists.   

What It Means:   

Even though the Bruin bench outscored the Blues 47-15, the game was won by converted free throw attempts.  Whitman attempted 38 free throws over the entire game, scoring 28 points compared to George Fox's 17 attempts and 12 makes.     

The Bruins almost pulled off the upset on the road but fall to 4-9 in conference play and 8-14 overall.

What Comes Next:  

George Fox plays on Saturday, February 15 in Spokane, Wash., against the Whitworth Pirates.  Tip-off is scheduled for 6:00pm.