NEWBERG, Ore. — The George Fox men's basketball team showed grit and determination in their first game of the season, giving the Chapman Panthers a run for their money in a solid 78-91 game to kick off the season.          

How It Happened
The Bruins took an early lead to begin the half, and kept the momentum rolling throughout the half to stay neck-and-neck with the Panthers.  Though at some points down as many as 10, the Bruins kept playing hard and had themselves within five at the half.  Fox battled back from early turnovers with key threes by Austin Clark and Charlie Powers to cut the Panther lead to 43-38. 

The Bruins came out with energy in the second half, keeping the pressure on the Panthers to keep them within striking distance.  Fox never more than eight points behind their opponents in the early stages of the half, and at one point reduced their deficit to a single point.  The Panthers turned on the jets from there, however, expanding their lead to 10 over the next five minutes and putting the Bruins in a dire situation. 

Though late shots from Powers and Nick Greenwood helped to try and light a spark for the Bruins, the Panthers pushed past the Bruin press to hand the Bruins an opening loss, 78-91.             

Top Performers
Charlie Powers led the scoring for the Bruins, dropping 22 points to aid the Bruins effort.  Austin Clark and Nick Greenwood also contributed solid games, with each scoring 19 and 14 respectively.  Samuel Stewart IV and Austin Clark were among the defensive stars of the game as well.  Stewart IV contributed nine rebounds, while Clark collected four steals.  Stewart, along with Aiden Price, each contributed two blocks on defense as well.               

Coach's Thoughts
"We learned a lot about ourselves in game one," Bruin head coach Maco Hamilton said, "I thought we did some good things and I thought there were areas that we can improve. We'll pick apart the film and continue to get better."

What It Means
The Bruins drop their first game of the year to the Panthers, and hope to even their record with their next game against Colorado College next Friday.

What Happens Next
The Bruins square off against Colorado College next Friday, November 17, at 4:00 p.m. in Forest Grove, Ore.