McMINNVILLE, Ore. – Longtime men's basketball rivals Linfield and George Fox tangled Friday night at Ted Wilson Gymnasium in the Northwest Conference opener for both clubs.
 
Linfield hit 58 percent of its shots from the field and outrebounded George Fox 31-24 on the way to an impressive 94-78 romp over the Bruins. The Wildcats ran their record to 6-0 for the season while George Fox saw its record even out at 3-3.
 
'Cat Stats
Liam O'Reilly poured in a career-high 25 points on 11 of 16 shooting and Troy Arce hit 9 of 10 free throws on his way to 16 points, leading a parade of five Linfield starters in double figures.
 
In addition to O'Reilly's 25 points that came mostly on medium range jumpers and hard drives to the basket, O'Reilly snagged seven rebounds, had two steals and two assists and gave up just one turnover in 30 minutes of action.
 
Arce hit 3 of 5 from the floor, including a three-pointer, and passed out three assists. Tyler Watts added 14 points, making 5 of 7, Riley Bruil went 5 for 8 on his way to 13 points, five assists and one steal, and Jordan Clark turned in a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds.
 
Linfield hit eight three-point baskets, with Riley Bruil canning three of them.
 
George Fox by the numbers
Dylan Hamlett scored 16 points and had eight rebounds to carry the Bruins offensively. Mason Green-Richards, the Northwest Conference's leading scorer during November, was held to a season-low 13 points. Rico Thomas, Johnathan Doutt and Ryan Lacey all had 10.
 
George Fox shot 52 percent from the field.
 
1st Half
George Fox grabbed the early momentum, opening up a 15-10 lead after Rico's three-pointer with 11:11 left. The Bruins' advantage grew to as many as 10 points, 26-16, on Doutt's basket at the 8:26 mark. Linfield closed to within three points at the intermission, 42-39.
 
The Bruins were paced by Rico's eight first-half points. O'Reilly netted 11 points on 5 of 7 shooting in the opening period. Arce added 10 points. Both clubs shot an even 50 percent from the field during the game's opening 20 minutes
 
2nd Half
After Doutt hit a jumper that put GFU in front 50-49 with 16:40 left, the Wildcats launched a 13-3 run to seize control. With the crowd of 950 roaring its approval, Linfield increased its lead to double digits as Bruil swished a three-pointer after taking a feed from Arce. The lead eventually reached 20 points on a jumper by o'Reilly.
 
Next
Linfield visits the Pacific Boxers in Forest Grove Saturday in another NWC encounter. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. following the women's game. Live audio coverage will be provided by the Linfield Sports Network.