FOREST GROVE, Ore. --- The George Fox men's basketball team made the trip north to face off with NWC foe Pacific on Saturday night. The Bruins entered looking to sweep the season series with the Boxers with a follow up of their 71-69 December home victory over Pacific. George Fox mounted a scorching second-half comeback but the Boxers ultimately held on to the lead on their home court and George Fox fell 73-68.

How It Happened

Both squads were struggling from the field throughout the early going. Pacific jumped out to an early 15-7 lead as George Fox had a hard time getting shots to fall from the floor. Austin Clark narrowed the deficit to 15-10 at the ten-minute mark in the opening half. After a Pacific timeout, the offensive struggles continued for both teams. Pacific stretched the lead to as much as 13 points at 27-14 with four minutes remaining in the half. George Fox cut into the Boxer lead as time wound down, trailing by nine, 32-23, at the break. 

The Boxers extended the lead back to double digits at the 17-minute mark in the second half looking to put the game out of reach before suddenly the Bruins came alive, going on a 10-0 run over the next two minutes of clock to cut the Boxer lead to 39-38. Zac Schmerber turned it on during the George Fox spurt, scoring seven of the Bruins' ten points during the span. Pacific wouldn't give the lead away so easily. The Boxers jumped back out to a seven point lead. Zac Schmerber was having none of it. Schmerber manufactured a 7-0 run by himself, hitting back-to-back treys and adding an and-one free throw to knot the score at 53-53 with 7:24 remaining in regulation. Brendan Ristchard put the Bruins in front for the first time all night with a layup at the seven minute mark. Both teams exchanged buckets for the next three minutes, level at 62 with four to play. Pacific made a 5-0 run to then take a 67-62 lead with 2:55 to play. The pace of the game slowed tremendously over the final three minutes. Davon Walker cut the deficit to 67-66 with a minute to play. The Boxers were able to ice the game away from the free throw line over the final 60 seconds and come away with the 73-68.

Top Performances

Zac Schmerber was phenomenal in the second half, the Bruins' leading scorer finished with a game-high 25 points on 9-for-16 from the floor and 60% from three-point land. Kalu Stricklin had one of his best nights of the season offensively, adding 13 points to go along with a game-high nine rebounds. 

What It Means

The Bruins fall to 10-9 on the season and 5-5 in NWC play, going 1-1 on the weekend following Friday's home win over Puget Sound. 

Up Next

The Bruins have a midweek matchup on the horizon, heading to face Lewis & Clark on the road on Tuesday at 8:00 pm.