On Wednesday, the University of Redlands men's basketball team dropped its first loss in seven outings, falling to 11th-ranked Whitworth University (WA) at the Chapman Tournament in Orange. The Bulldogs battled with the Northwest Conference foes through the 7:54-mark of the second stanza, when a cold streak halted the Bulldogs' upset efforts and led to the 57-70 defeat.
During the opening minutes, the squads traded punches to force a knotted score at nine-all with 13 minutes to go in the first period. Junior forwardBrandon Hrboka (San Pedro, CA) capped off this first run of points for the Bulldogs with a jumper.
The Pirates surged out to a 17-13 lead until senior guard Brian Kuklok(Poway, CA) drained a jumper and senior forward Josiah Brensdal (Kent, WA) knocked down a three-pointer to put the Maroon and Gray in front by a score of 18-17.
After the third tie of the stanza at 22 each, Whitworth erupted for a 5-0 run before Hrboka and junior guard Ricky Peetz (Redlands, CA) joined forces to cut the deficit to one with a minute to go.
But the Pirates' Dustin McConnell nailed a jumper with 42 seconds left on the clock for a 29-26 advantage at the break.
With a post-buzzer technical setting up a pair of free-throws for the Maroon and Gray, Redlands took full advantage of opportunity and fired off a 7-2 run to start the second stanza for the 33-31 lead. Kuklok led the effort with five points in the initial minute of the period.
A back-and-forth struggle ensued until the final tie score of the game came at 50 apiece with 8:40 remaining.
Following a three-pointer by junior forward Alex Rudd (St. Louis, MO) and a jumper by Kuklok, the Bulldogs they held a 55-50 advantage and appeared to be poised for a strong finish.
However, the Pirates had other plans, as they rattled off an 18-2 run to close out the game for the win.
Redlands' final basket came with 35 seconds left when Brensdal ended the seven-minute drought on a jumper.
Kuklok recorded a team-high 13 points, while senior guard Tristan Kirk(Redlands, CA) added 12 points and eight rebounds for the Maroon and Gray.
McConnell led the Pirates (8-1) with 19 points and George Valle backed him with 11.
Overall, the Bulldogs shot 40.4% from the field and converted seven three-pointers at a clip of 31.8%. They were perfect from the line but only gained four chances, compared to Whitworth's 12-for-17 performance.
Redlands (7-3) enjoys a short break before returning to action on Saturday, Dec. 29, for a 2 p.m. showdown against Buena Vista University (IA) in Currier Gym.