The Oglethorpe men's basketball team found themselves in a high-scoring affair with La Verne on the final day of their trip to southern California. The two teams scored a combined 115 points in the second half Tuesday evening in La Verne, California, but it was the homestanding Leopards who prevailed in the end, 98-92, dropping the Stormy Petrels to 2-2 on the season.

The Petrels enjoyed several outstanding individual performances, as junior guard Justin Edwards scored 21 points on 9 of 17 shooting and 3 of 4 from the free throw line, senior guard Connor Smith poured in 22 points and grabbed 8 rebounds, senior guard Drew Patrick put up 20 points on 8 of 16 from the field and 3 of 3 from the charity stripe, and junior guard Chris Lawrence scored 12 points on 4 of 5 from 3-point range.

Both teams shot the ball well, especially in the second half. La Verne converted at a 50 percent rate to Oglethorpe's 48 percent and put up a 44 percent mark from 3-point range compared with the Petrels' 36 percent. Oglethorpe shot 85 percent from the free throw line, outpacing La Verne's70 percent. The Petrels also outplayed the Leopards in the paint, outscoring them 42-26 down low. La Verne outscored the Petrels 25-15 off the bench, though, and passed out 25 assists to Oglethorpe's 12.

It was the Petrels getting out to a big lead early, running off 11 consecutive points to take a 13-4 lead with 15:20 left in the opening half. It proved to be their largest lead of the game. The Leopards worked their way back into the contest with a 35-15 stretch that lasted 12:40. By the end of it, the home team had built a 39-28 advantage, their largest of the game, with 2:44 remaining until halftime. Back-to-back three-pointers drew Oglethorpe closer, making it 39-34, but La Verne held a 41-34 lead at the break.

The Petrels started the second half with a mini-run, putting themselves right back in the game. They outscored the Leopards 10-2 over a 2:15 stretch to cut their lead to two, 46-44, with 17:16 remaining. La Verne answered with a 10-2 run of their own, though, pushing their advantage right back out to 10 points, 56-46. Oglethorpe worked their way back into the contest again, using a 16-7 spurt to cut the lead to just a single point, 63-62, with nine minutes remaining. The two teams traded baskets for a time, but the Petrels never tied the game nor took the lead. A 12-1 La Verne run pushed their advantage out to 10 again, 79-69, with 5:25 left. Oglethorpe again went on a run and cut it down to a single-possession game, 82-79. with 2:49 left. The Leopards were able to keep the Petrels at arm's length from there, though, hitting free throws down the stretch to secure the 6-point win. The Petrels shot 58 percent from the field during the second half, while La Verne shot 53 percent from the field overall and 53 percent from 3-point range.

"Tonight was kind of the opposite of last night," said Oglethorpe head coach Philip Ponder. "Last night was a defensive battle, while tonight was an offensive battle, particularly in the second half. Neither team could stop the other in the second half. I was proud of how the team battled back from a double-digit deficit. We had the ball in a one-possession game late but couldn't convert. We just need to clean up some little things and execute a little bit better. La Verne is a talented squad and would be one of the better teams in our league. It was tough playing four games in five days across the country, but the guys definitely battle tonight. We have a way to go, but I think we're going to be a tough team to beat by January."

The Petrels now return home and take a couple days off for Thanksgiving. They'll get back to action Saturday and Sunday, when they host the Oglethorpe Thanksgiving Classic at Dorough Field House. They'll take on Maryville (Tennessee) Saturday at 5 p.m. before going against LaGrange Sunday at 4 p.m.