Photo: Bob Paz

PASADENA (Jan. 6, 2020) – The Caltech men's basketball team sits atop the SCIAC standings through two games following the Beavers' 67-57 home victory over Occidental College on Monday. Caltech joins defending conference champions Pomona-Pitzer Colleges as the only unbeaten teams in conference play. The win marks the team's second consecutive over the Tigers this season after winning the 110 Rivalry game back in November.

"2-0 obviously feels great," Head Coach Dr. Oliver Eslinger said, "And while I speak on the team's behalf, they know every conference game will be a grind and we have to keep focusing on the process. It's all about the process."

Junior forward Spencer Schneider (Houston, Texas / Clearbrook) broke out of a rough stretch of games with one of the most important performances of his career. The third-year player went 8-for-13 from the field en route to a 20 point, 10 rebound game. Schneider also connected on a trio of three-point field goals, including the proverbial dagger that put the home team up by 12 points with just over a minute to go in regulation. The junior found scoring lanes all over the floor, and came up particularly big in crunch time with 14 of his points falling in the second half. Monday's big game is further highlighted by Schneider overcoming a tough outing at the University of La Verne over the weekend which saw the Beavers come out victorious in overtime.

"Spencer just stays confident," Eslinger said. "He doesn't waver. The focus is there. He is an experienced player—he's been through so many games now. He brings the right approach. We are very happy to see him perform like that."

Caltech led Occidental, 37-26, at halftime thanks to a 54.5 first-half shooting percentage. Sophomore guard Noah Barnes (Springfield, Va. / Jefferson) had a mini-breakout of his own in the first half where he scored all nine of his points, but the Tigers showed some tenacity later on by temporarily erasing the Beavers' lead at the 12-minute mark. The home team quickly regained control, however with back-to-back Schneider layups, both of which came with setup from Barnes and freshman forward Pavlos Stavrinides (Nicosia, Cyprus / The English School of Nicosia). Over the final 12 minutes, Caltech outscored Oxy 24-14 as the defensive stops began to mount. The Beavers held the Tigers' top two scorers to a combined 8-for-29 from the field and held the visiting team to a collective 21-percent from beyond the arc. The repeated stops took pressure off the Caltech attack and allowed the host Beavers to go to work on offense late in the game, putting things firmly out of reach down the stretch.

Through two games, Caltech checks in as the SCIAC's second-highest rated defensive team behind only co-leader Pomona-Pitzer.

"Overall, it was our defense that strung together a bunch of great stop possessions," Eslinger said. "It was really impressive to watch us re-gain some toughness and come back and build that lead again. It's the defense that fuels us."

Caltech entered the game well prepared in its second meeting with Oxy, albeit the first with conference implications. The Beavers will have the opportunity to sweep the Tigers back at Oxy in the final game of the regular season on Feb. 25. Senior guard Alec Andrews (Folsom, Calif. / Folsom) dished on five assists to go with his 10 points while junior guard Marcus Gee (Santa Monica, Calif. / Santa Monica) provided the home team with 15 points and while shooting a perfect 5-for-5 on free throws. Caltech also handled Oxy on the glass, outrebounding the Tigers 40-27. 

"We take pride in our preparation," Eslinger said. "Our coaching staff is totally engaged and they are a huge reason that our players believe in what we are doing. We want to go into every game so prepared that there no surprises. It's nice that we have personnel that can be versatile and we can go with all sorts of lineups depending on the situation."

Eslinger and the Beavers will look to keep things rolling on Wednesday when they meet Whittier College in the annual Orange Out game at 7 p.m.

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