BOX SCORE

MONMOUTH, Ore. – For the first time all season, Corban's men's basketball team walked away after the final whistle was blown on the other side of the score board. In the opening game of the Capital City Classic, the Warriors fell to cross town rival and NCAA Division III member Willamette, 104-97, Friday inside the New P.E. Building on the campus of Western Oregon University.

Freshman Jordan Carter (Salem, Ore.) led the Warriors in scoring with 19 points on 4-for-9 shooting from the field, while becoming the second Corban player in a row and eighth in program history to go perfect at the free throw line making 10-out-of-10 shots. Carter was joined offensively by five other Warriors – junior Erik Cronrath (Battle Ground, Wash.), senior Nash Keene (Aumsville, Ore.), junior Jonathan Ramirez (New Britain, Conn.), freshman Josiah Sebens (Bellingham, Wash.), and sophomore Jacob Kopra (Gresham, Ore.) – that scored in double figures with 16, 16, 16, 15, and 11 points respectively. Kopra and senior Ian Logan (Aloha, Ore.) pulled down a team-high tying five rebounds each, while Ramirez handed out a team-best four assists.

Over the opening 14-plus minutes, Willamette built an 11-point lead (46-35) when Sean Dart hit a lay-in with 5:26 remaining in the first half. Corban would not go into the night quietly, as the Warriors battled back to within a single bucket (47-45) thanks to a 10-1 run over a span of two minutes and six seconds that concluded with a lay-up by junior Brelin Powell (Boise, Idaho) with 3:20 on the clock. The Bearcats would increase their lead back to double digits (56-45) before having to settle for a nine-point half time lead, 56-47.

The second half would begin with Willamette scoring the opening eight points en route to grabbing a 17-point lead (62-45) following a Robbie Kunke jumper with 19:03 left in the game. Corban would claw its way back to knot the game at 69-all thanks to a 24-8 run that ended with an old-fashion three-point play by Ramirez with 14:42 remaining. The Warriors would take their first lead (78-76) at the 12-minute mark when Ramirez connected on a three-pointer. Over the next two-plus minutes, Willamette would use a 10-0 run en route to securing an insurmountable eight-point lead (86-78) after a Ryan Meehan three-pointer with 9:09 left in the game. Corban would get to within three points (90-87) after a pair of Carter free throws, but Willamette used timely inside play and free throw shooting down the stretch to earn the hard-fought seven-point win (104-97).

Taylor Mounts would lead all players with 35 points for Willamette on 12-for-24 shooting from the field to go along with a 9-for-11 performance at the free throw line. Mounts was aided offensively by four other Bearcats – Kunke, Meehan, Dart, and Marcus Holmes – with 19, 18, 13, and 11 points respectively. Dart would pull down a game-high 13 rebounds for Willamette, while Kunke handed out a game-high eight assists for the victorious Bearcats.

Corban shot 35-for-61 (57.4%) from the field that included a scorching 19-for-31 (61.3%) in the second half. The Warriors were also 10-for-21 (47.6%) from beyond the three-point line and 19-for-25 (76.0%) at the free throw line. On the other hand, Willamette was 37-for-75 (49.3%) from the field, 12-for-32 (37.5%) from long distance, and 18-for-30 (60.0%) at the charity stripe.

With tonight's result, Corban falls to 6-1 on the season and Willamette evens its record at 2-2. The Warriors will return to the court tomorrow night – Saturday, November 27th – in the consolation finals of the Capital City Classic against Pacifica University beginning at 5:00 p.m. inside the New P.E. Building on the campus of Western Oregon University.