WHITTIER, Calif. --- The George Fox men's basketball team took on the Whittier Poets in the Poets' home gym and overcame a seven-point halftime deficit to win, 87-77, with a massive second-half scoring onslaught.
How It Happened
The Poets jumped out to an early lead that then held through the halftime intermission. Fox fought back after trailing by as many as ten points in the first 20 minutes of action and headed into the locker room down seven, 41-34.
The second half was played more at the Bruins' pace as they forced eight turnovers and held their hosts without a made triple in the last 20 minutes of action.
After trailing by seven at the break, Fox out-hustled Whittier 27-18 in the first 12 minutes of the second half to grab a 61-59 lead with eight minutes left. From that point on, Fox outscored the Poets 26-16 in the closing minutes as they hung 53 second-half points on their hosts in the 10-point come-from-behind win.
Momo Stokes scored 12 of his 18 points in the second half to provide a spark off the bench, and Zac Schmerber continued his hot shooting on the trip with 10 of his 22 points in the closing half.
Top Performers
Schmerber led the Bruins in scoring for the second straight game on 6-14 shooting from the field, including 4-7 from deep, and a perfect 6-6 from the foul line. Davon Walker and Stokes chipped in 18 apiece, and Walker also tallied team-highs in steals (2) and assists (3).
Coach's Thoughts
We new coming into the game that Whittier was going to challenge our toughness and i think in the first half they were the much more tough team," Coach Maco Hamilton said after the game. "I thought in the second half our guys responded extremely well and we took control and started to play at the pace we wanted to play and were the tougher team for sure, mentally and physically. It was a great win and it was great for us to overcome some initial challenges and show some resiliency."
What It Means
The Bruins improve to 5-4 on the year and have one more game left in their SoCal swing on Sunday, Dec. 12.
Up Next
Fox faces Caltech in Pasadena, Calif., on Sunday, Dec. 12 with a 2:00 pm tip off against the Beavers.
