NEWBERG, Ore. --- George Fox men's basketball held off the Pacific (Ore.) Boxers on Friday, Dec. 3, in Miller Gym to claim its Northwest Conference opener, 71-69, with a last-second layup.

How It Happened

The Boxers won the tip and opened an early 5-0 lead with their frenetic pacing and transition game. A fast break bucket by James Moore and a trey from Davon Walker evened the game at 5-5, and that was just the first minute of play.

Both teams pushed the pace and picked up full-court for the vast majority of the first half, and the pace showed in the shooters' legs and touch from outside - at the half, the two teams combined for just 2-29 from beyond the arc. 

After a tiring 20 minutes of action, the two sides were neck-and-neck with Pacific ahead by just three points, 37-34. 

Out of the break, the Bruins' players locked in and ate away at the deficit to tie it at 41-41 on a pair of Zach Sly foul shots with four minutes gone by from the half. A timely trey from Charlie Powers gave the Bruins a 44-41 lead seconds later, but the Boxers retook the lead with a quick unanswered burst.

A statement block by Kalu Stricklin ignited a fast break for Walker to make it 50-49 with 11 minutes left and the Bruins never trailed again from that point. Not to be deterred, however, Pacific slowly closed the gap in the closing minutes and tied the game at 67-67 with two minutes left to play. Both teams scored layups in transition to make it 69-69, but the Bruins had the last bucket of the night.

Sly drew the defense's eyes and drove the right baseline before threading a perfect pass to Stricklin for the game-winning layup. Confusion ensued seconds later as the Bruins stormed the court, but after a late timeout was awarded to the Boxers' bench, their desperation heave was short and wide of the mark as time expired.

Top Performers

Walker and Stricklin poured in 16 points apiece to lead the Bruins' scorers. Zac Schmerber and Sly added 10 each, and Moore led with eight rebounds. Sly and Walker each notched three steals and Stricklin had two crucial blocks in the win. Sly also drew multiple charges and sacrificed his body repeatedly in the winning effort.

Coach's Thoughts

"Davon Walker said after the game that he was proud of our resiliency and I couldn't agree more!" said coach Maco Hamilton. "We knew we'd have to have poise in order to win, and I thought we exhibited that pretty well down the stretch.  Hats off to these young men for making winning plays when it mattered!"

What It Means

The Bruins snap a three-game losing streak and are 1-0 in NWC action to start the 2021-22 conference schedule.

Up Next

George Fox caps its first NWC weekend with a trip to Tacoma to face Puget Sound on Saturday, Dec. 4, at 6:00 pm.