The University of Redlands men's basketball program notched an impressive victory in its opening contest of the 2012-13 campaign, defeating the San Diego Christian College Hawks in a thriller, 85-84.  In an exciting second half, U of R senior guard Tristan Kirk (Redlands, CA) sank two free throws with just four seconds remaining in regulation to win the game for the Bulldogs.

In the opening stanza, the Maroon and Gray jumped out to an early 14-4 lead after just three minutes.  Following junior forward Alex Rudd's (St. Louis, MO) three-point shot, junior guard Ricky Peetz (Redlands, CA) hit one of his own from downtown, extending the lead to 14 points midway through the first half. 

The Hawks fought back to within one when Derek Dickerson hit a three-pointer with 6:35 left before halftime, but Peetz immediately answered by sinking a three to push the lead back to 42-38.  Another Peetz jumper and Rudd layup extended the lead to seven points, but Dickerson kept the Hawks close by scoring another three-point shot. 

Not to be outdone, Peetz drilled his fourth shot from beyond the arc to keep the Bulldogs in front.  At the half, the Maroon and Gray held a solid 59-47 lead.

San Diego Christian used a 14-5 run to open the second half, cutting Redlands' lead to just three at 64-61.  Junior forward Brandon Hrboka (San Pedro, CA) and junior guard Eric Radford (Federal Way, WA) responded well for the Maroon and Gray, making a few layups to help make it a seven-point game. 

With just 10:31 remaining in regulation, Peetz drained another three-pointer and Kirk penetrated to get to the rim for a couple of hard-fought layups, helping to keep the Bulldogs ahead. 

The Hawks got hot late, however, and took a one-point lead at 84-83 with 24 seconds remaining in the second stanza. 

After a timeout, Redlands' Head Coach Jim Ducey put the ball in Kirk's hands, and in the act of shooting, Kirk was fouled with four ticks left on the clock.  Not fazed by the pressure, he sank both from the charity stripe to give the Bulldogs the one-point advantage. 

Subsequently, a last-second heave for San Diego Christian fell short, resulting in the Bulldogs' triumph.

On the night, Kirk led all scorers with 24 points on 9-of-14 shooting in addition to grabbing six boards and dishing out four assists.  Peetz, providing the instant offense off the bench for the Bulldogs, went 5-for-7 from downtown, tallying 17 points in all.  Additionally, Radford recorded a perfect shooting night, scoring 11 points on a 5-for-5 performance while also notching six rebounds. 

Redlands (1-0) returns to action on Friday, November 23, when it travels Costa Mesa to compete in the Vanguard University Tournament.  It takes on Concordia University-Irvine on Friday afternoon before matching-up against the hosts on Saturday evening.