FOREST GROVE, Ore. – A battle of early season unbeatens went the way of the home team Saturday night at Stoller Center as Pacific topped Linfield 88-71 in Northwest Conference men's basketball action.
What it means
By virtue of a schedule quirk that left them idle on Friday, the Boxers (7-0, 1-0 NWC) enjoyed the benefit of a fresh legs. Meanwhile, the Wildcats (6-1, 1-1 NWC) were playing the second game of a back-to-back, having faced a frenetic battle with local rival George Fox the night before.
"We played poorly in many phases against a team that was fresh, lively and played great," said Linfield coach
Shanan Rosenberg. "I give Pacific a ton of credit for playing very hard and crisp."
'Cat Stats
Four Wildcat starters scored in double figures.
Riley Bruil and
Troy Arce shared team scoring honors with 13 points each.
Tyler Watts added 12 points and
Liam O'Reilly provided 11 more.
Dempsey Roggenbuck played 16 minutes off the bench, scoring nine points.
Boxer Totals
Davis Holly delivered 25 points and Nate Olowo produced 18 points, eight rebounds and two blocked shots to carry the Boxers.
Pacific sank 23 of 24 free throw attempts, including a 10-for-10 performance by Olowo. The Boxers outrebounded the Wildcats 37-34.
How it played out
Linfield led 13-9 midway through the opening half before Pacific launched a 14-3 run to take command, 23-16. By intermission, the Wildcats trailed 41-30.
The swing of momentum proved monumental as Linfield never recovered, failing to cut the margin to single digits in the second half.
Pacific eventually stretched its lead to 20 in the final minute.
"We have great guys who are top notch competitors," Rosenberg said. "I expect we will go back to work and be hungry for the next one. We will learn from this game and move forward."
Next
Linfield steps outside of the Northwest Conference for its next five games, four of them on the road. Wednesday, Linfield heads to Eugene to meet Northwest Christian at 7 p.m. Saturday, the 'Cats are in Olympia, Washington, to face Evergreen State.