NEWBERG, Ore. – A 40-point second half wasn't enough for the George Fox men's basketball team on Wednesday night, as they fell to Hardin-Simmons 88-70.
How It Happened
The Bruins started slow out of the gates, trailing 17-2 after the opening six minutes. Fox slowly began to chip away at the lead in the following minutes, whittling the Cowboys' advantage to nine at one point. However, a late Hardin-Simmons push gave the Cowboys a 45-30 advantage going into the second half.
Momo Stokes lead the scoring for the Bruins with 10 at half.
The Bruins remained neck-and-neck with HSU the entire second half, finishing the half with 40 points to the 43 of HSU. After remaining competitive in the scoring department for the first part of the half, the Bruins began to gain some momentum after a drained triple from
Mo Jackson was followed quickly by a steal courtesy of
James Moore resulting in two more, giving the Bruins a run of five unanswered.
Moore caught fire midway through the second, wowing the crowd with a no-look triple on a transition play; the junior turned around to acknowledge the fans, pointing at them as the ball found the bottom of the net. Just two plays later,
Charlie Powers kept the highlights going with an ankle breaking move to get Fox within eight. The Bruins got within five points with six minutes remaining, but ran out of steam to close the game. The Cowboys shot an immaculate 14-14 from the line on the day to foil any hopes of a Bruin comeback in the waning minutes, and took an 88-70 victory home to Texas.
Top Performances
Momo Stokes and
James Moore led the way for the Bruins on the offensive side of the ball with 19 and 18 points, respectively, combining for 15-26 from the field and 5-8 from beyond the arc. Defensively,
Chris Nickelberry and
Davon Walker combined for seven steals, while Moore and
Mo Jackson contributed a block each to the Bruins' effort.
What It Means
The Bruins move to 2-8 on the year overall, while still remaining 1-1 in conference play.
What Comes Next
After breaking for Christmas, the Bruins next take the court on Friday, Dec. 30 at 3:00 p.m. to take on a strong Illinois Wesleyan team in Newberg.
