Box Score | Photo Gallery

FOREST GROVE – Daniel Zitani (Sr., Oakland, Calif.) and Mitch Wettig (Jr., Bend, Ore.) led an impressive post presence that gave Pacific their best offensive performance of the season Tuesday night as the Boxers rolled past New Hope Christian, 97-63, in men's basketball action at the Stoller Center.
 
Zitani led the Boxers with 23 points, going 7 of 14 from the field and 9 of 10 from the free throw line, to go along with six rebounds and two blocks.  Wettig, meanwhile, was nearly perfect as he connected for 20 points on 9 of 10 from the field and 2 of 2 from three-point range.  The junior also had six rebounds, one assist, one block and three steals.
 
The post pair led Pacific on a night where they build a 20-point lead midway through the first half and never let the foot off the gas.  The Boxers (3-2) finished shooting 56.7 percent from the field and an impressive 55 percent from three-point range (11-20).
 
Riley Grandinetti (Jr., Murray, Utah) added 12 points in an impressive performance of his own, making 4 of 5 from three-point range.  Landon Littlefield (So., Henderson, Nev.) finished with six assists.
 
Nicholas Dillingham led New Hope Christian (2-13) on a torrid night from the three-point line, scoring 28 points on 9 of 18 from the field and 8 of 16 from beyond the arc.  Corey Gantt added 12 points.  The Deacons finished the night shooting 36.2 percent from the field and 34.6 percent from three-point range.
 
Grandinetti and Wettig paced a blistering first four minutes that saw the Boxers build an 11-point lead before the clock hit 16 minutes.  Wettig's second three-pointer of the night gave the Boxers a 29-8 lead at the 13:27 mark and a pair of Zitani free throws extended the lead 33-10 before the period was 10 minutes old.
 
Pacific's 58 percent shooting in the half did not slow late as the Boxers built a 31-point cushion, 56-25, on a Zitani free throw with just under a minute left.  It looked to stay that way until Coleman was fouled on a half-court attempt just as time expired.  Coleman hit all three free throws, bring the Deacons to within 56-28 at the half.
 
New Hope did not find their shooting touch coming out of the locker rooms, and Pacific took advantage to bolt out to a 41-point lead, 82-41, on Jordan Batey's (Jr., San Antonio, Texas) three-pointer with 11:02 to go.  The Boxers would equal that margin on a pair of Brad Hagaman (Fr., Molalla, Ore.) free throws with 6:31 left before the Deacons reduced the margin to 34 against the Pacific bench.
 
Pacific will now take another long break for final exams before opening Christmas Break with their second Southern California road trip.  The Boxers play next on Sat., Dec. 14, at Pomona-Pitzer to open the three-game swing.  New Hope Christian competes again on Sunday as they face a club team from Reed College in Portland.