BOX SCORE

FULLERTON, Calif. – Freshman Erik Cronrath (Battle Ground, Wash.) scored a career-high 15 points on 6-for-13 shooting from the field, as Corban's men's basketball team earned a two-game sweep in Southern California via a victory over Hope International, 66-63, Saturday inside the Darling Pavilion.

After picking up an upset victory over nationally-ranked Point Loma Nazarene on Thanksgiving night, Corban concluded its Southern California trip against its second straight NAIA Division I opponent and member of the Golden State Athletic Conference.

Corban jumped out to an early 8-0 lead via baskets by junior Ben Potloff (Keizer, Ore.) and sophomore Clay Martin (Beaverton, Ore.) along with a pair of buckets by Cronrath, which included a run-closing jumper with 17:03 remaining in the first half. Hope International would battle back within a single point (8-7) via a 7-0 run that was finished off via a fast break lay-up by Buai Tut with 13:35 showing on the clock. Corban would extend its lead to as much as 10 points (23-13) via a 15-6 run over a span of 12 minutes and two seconds, as junior Paul Martin (Beaverton, Ore.) hit a pair of free throws with 4:58 left in the opening half. The host Royals would cut Corban's lead to five points (29-24) via an 11-6 run, as Marko Torovic hit a pair of free throws with 26 seconds left in the first half. Sophomore Bryan Martin (Salem, Ore.) would give the Warriors a seven-point advantage (31-24) at the half via a pair of free throws with 11 ticks hanging on the first half clock.

In the opening three-plus minutes, Corban extended its lead to double figures (43-32) as Clay Martin converted a lay-up with 16:39 remaining in the game. The Warriors would push their lead to as much, as 12 points (52-40) via a jumper by sophomore Ian Logan (Aloha, Ore.) with 11:24 left in the contest. Hope International then used a 16-4 that was highlighted by Tom Granado's game-tying lay-in over a span of seven minutes and four seconds to knot the game for the first time at 56-56 with just over four minutes left in the game. Five straight points by Cronrath that included a dunk and a conventional three-point play would hand Corban a three-point lead (61-58) with 2:46 left in the contest. Clay Martin would connect on three straight free throws to give Corban a four-point advantage (64-60) with 21 seconds remaining before a three-pointer by HIU's Richard Merical would trim the Warriors' lead to a mere point (64-63) with just over one second left. In a desperation attempt, a foul by Hope International put Paul Martin on the free throw line where he converted both shots from the charity stripe for the final margin of three points (66-63).

Along with Cronrath's career-high scoring performance, the Martin brothers -- Clay and Paul -- scored in double figures registering 14 and 10 points respectively. Clay Martin pulled down a team-high four rebounds to go along with a game-high five assists, while Logan and Potloff aided Martin's rebounding performance with three boards each.

Hope International was led by Marcellus Cullors' game-high 29 points, while Granado added 11 points and a game-high 13 rebounds. Torovic and Merical added eight and seven points respectively, while Cullors pulled down four rebounds to go along with his game-high scoring performance.

As a team, the Warriors shot 23-for-55 (41.8%) from the field to go along with a 2-for-12 (16.7%) showing from long distance and an 18-for-21 (85.7%) performance at the free throw line that included an 11-for-13 showing in the second half. On the other hand, Hope International was 27-for-49 (55.1%) from the floor to go along with a 2-for-7 (28.6%) showing from beyond the arc and a 7-for-11 (63.6%) performance at the charity stripe.

Corban evens its early season record at 3-3 overall with the victory, while Hope International falls to 1-3 on the season. The Warriors return to action on Friday, December 5th, when they open Cascade Collegiate Conference play against the Geoducks of The Evergreen State College beginning at approximately 7:30 p.m. inside the C.E. Jeffers Sports Center.