LOS ANGELES — Oxy star Kris Montoya got hot, freshman Andrew Johnson is growing up fast andKory Hamane hit another game-winning shot as the Occidental men's basketball team beat La Sierra 84-81 in thrilling fashion at Rush Gymnasium on Tuesday.
Montoya was 5 of 7 from the 3-point line and 10 of 18 from the field on his way to a game-high 29 points, to go along with seven rebounds.
Johnson, who had a career-best 23 points on Monday night against the Milwaukee School of Engineering, one-upped his performance with 25 points and 15 rebounds.
But it was Hamane who came through with the big shot for the second time this year. The sophomore transfer from Puget Sound received a pass at the top of the key from Jay Miller and buried a 3-pointer with 31 seconds left — as the shot clock expired — to put Oxy up by three.
La Sierra had two mediocre looks from three on the game's final possession that missed badly.
"I was fortunate enough to be in the right place at the right time," said Hamane, who hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with under 1 minute left in Oxy's 72-70 win over La Verne on Dec. 7. "I've been in that spot a few times this year and I'm just glad it went down today."
Hamane, along with Chad Tanioka, have settled in nicely as Oxy's two point guards. Both finished with four assists, combining for at least 10 points and five assists for the third game in a row.
Montoya bounced back from a pair of average performances, by his standards, in which he averaged just nine points. Against the Golden Eagles the 6-foot-6 forward lit it up, particularly in the first half. He scored 16 points on 4 for 5 from the 3-point line in the first 20 minutes alone.
"We really wanted to bounce back from a tough loss last night and get another win before conference play," Montoya said. "It was a team victory and were happy to finish off 2014 on a high note."
Wolfgang Wood led La Sierra with 18 points and Ian Mozeleski added 17.
Miller scored nine points and grabbed five rebounds in 22 minutes in his first career start for the Tigers. Ty Cobb scored six points and had three rebounds.
The Tigers shot 40 percent from beyond the arc and 49.2 percent from the field.
Oxy opens SCIAC play on the road this weekend. The Tigers try to make it 3-0 in conference play at Cal Lutheran on Jan. 4 at 5 p.m.
"We have a few more days of practice in preparation to get ready for 14 very competitive SCIAC games," Oxy head coach Brian Newhall said. "Our guys are up for the challenge."