TACOMA, Wash. – Pacific overcame a 16-point first half deficit to challenge Puget Sound throughout the second half Saturday, but the Loggers did just enough to keep the Boxers from scoring at the end to take a 66-63 victory from the Boxers in Northwest Conference men's basketball action at Memorial Field House.
The Boxers (2-3, 1-1 NWC) found themselves down 27-11 with 7:13 to go in the first half before ending the period on a 19-4 run to go into halftime trailing 32-30. Pacific kept it close in the second half and held a lead with 8:54 left, but Puget Sound (4-3, 2-0 NWC) hit the clutch shots down the stretch to preserve the win.
Pacific out-shot the Loggers 46.3 percent (25-54) to 37.1 percent (23-62), but found themselves faltering in the departments that helped them beat Pacific Lutheran the night before. The Boxers shot just 2 of 8 from three-point range and 11 of 24 from the free throw line. The Loggers were 8 of 12 from long range and 12 of 18 on free throws.
LeMar Anglin (Sr., Chicago, Ill.) once again led Pacific 19 points, connecting on 8 of 14 from the field. Carson Bartlett (Jr., St. Helens, Ore.) added 13 points and Adam McElwee (So., Woodinville, Wash.) scored 11. Colin Wester (So., Sherwood, Ore.) led all players with 11 rebounds.
Kaleb Shelton led Puget Sound with 13 points. Julian Fernandez had 12 points and seven assists while Riggs Yarbro came off the bench to score 12. Gabe Borboa finished with eight rebounds as the Loggers out-rebounded the Boxers 44-37.
Puget Sound wasted little time jumping out to a double-digit lead in the opening half, going up 14-4 on a Yarbro jumper at the 14:38 mark. Pacific cut the lead to five over the next three minutes, coming within 14-9 on an Andrew Beatty (Jr., Lynnwood, Wash.) free throw with 11:10 to go. A made Fernandez shot at the 10:49 mark was the jumping off point for a 13-2 Puget Sound run, which culminated on another Yarbro jumper with 7:13 to go that gave the Loggers their biggest lead at 27-11.
The Loggers went cold the rest of the half, making just two shots from the field over the final seven minutes. The Boxers capitalized by going on a 19-5 run. McElwee fueled the run with six points, including a jumper when time expired that brought the Boxers within 32-30.
Pacific continued the run in the opening minutes of the second half, taking a 35-32 lead on a Bartlett jumper. The game got tight from there with the teams changing leads six times and tying it eight times in the stanza. The game was tied at 59-59 when Fernandez put the Loggers in front for good with a jumper with 4:42 to go. The Loggers proceeded to score on their next two possessions, using a Yarbro jumper and a Shelton free throw to build a five-point lead that the Boxers would not be able to overcome.
Pacific came within three points when Beatty connected with 53 seconds left and got the ball back when the Loggers turned the ball over with 17 seconds left, but Pacific missed three opportunities to tie the game.
Pacific will take the next week off for final exams before returning to the floor on Fri., Dec. 17, when they travel to Corban.