BOX SCORE

SALEM, Ore. – Sophomore Cyrus Ward became the first Warrior to score 30-or-more points since the feat was accomplished in back-to-back games at the end of the 2011-12 season, as Corban's men's basketball nearly completed a comeback before falling to the visiting Bruins of George Fox, 94-84, Saturday inside the C.E. Jeffers Sports Center.

Corban (3-6) was led offensively by Ward's game and career-high 33 points on 13-of-18 shooting from the field to go along with a game-high 10 rebounds for his first double-double of the season. Senior Josiah Sebens and junior Jordan Carter also scored in double figures with 15 and 13 points, respectively, while also aiding Ward on the boards with six and five rebounds, respectively. Freshman point guard Toby Roth chipped in with eight points and a team and career-high nine assists for the Warriors, while Carter dished out eight dimes to go along with his point and rebound totals.

George Fox (7-1) had six guys in double figures led by Jonny Howard with 18 points off the Bruins' bench on 5-of-7 shooting from the field that included a 4-for-6 performance from beyond the three-point arc. Five other Bruins – Sean Atkins, A.J. Grant, Spencer Bolte, Eli Graham, and Seth Brant – also scored in double figures with 16, 14, 13, 12, and 10 points, respectively. Atkins led the Bruins with seven rebounds, while Graham registered a double-double with a game-high 11 assists for George Fox.

In the first half, George Fox torched the nets shooting a scorching 18-for-31 (58.1%) from the field that included a 12-for-20 (54.5%) performance from beyond the three-point line en route to building an 18-point lead (52-34) at halftime.

A highly contested opening seven minutes would result in a three-point lead (13-10) for the visiting Bruins following a fast break lay-in by Sebens with 13:33 on the clock. Over the next four minutes, George Fox would use a 13-4 run to build a 12-point lead (26-14) that included three baskets from long distance by Grant during the stretch. Corban would pull within six points (26-20) after a 6-0 run with freshman Ernst Kruger providing four of the Warriors' six points on a pair of free throws and a jumper at the 8:20 mark. George Fox wasted little time in increasing its lead back to double-digits, as the Bruins used a 16-5 run over a span of four minutes to push their advantage to 17 points (42-25) after a fast break jumper in the paint by Graham with 4:30 left. The host Warriors got as close as 12 points (44-32) on a lay-in by Ward with 2:21 on the clock before George Fox closed out the opening half on an 8-2 run for the difference at halftime.

The second half would be a different story for Corban, as the Warriors held George Fox to just three made three-pointers and shot 51.6% (16-for-31) from the field en route to outscoring the Bruins by eight points (50-42) over the game's final twenty minutes.

After George Fox extended its lead to 25 points (65-40) on a three-pointer by Bolte with 16:09 remaining, Corban began its comeback. Over the next 12 minutes, Corban used a 31-19 run that cut the Bruins' lead to 13 points (84-71) on three straight free throws by freshman Caleb Herzberg with 4:38 on the clock. The host Warriors would continue to trim away at George Fox's lead, as Corban got within 10 points (92-82) on another lay-in by Ward with 51 seconds left. Unfortunately, the clock would become the enemy of the Warriors with George Fox continuing to hold a double-digit lead for the remainder of the game before the final difference of 10 points (94-84) sealed the Bruins' seventh win of the season.

As a team, Corban combined to shoot 29-for-58 (50.0%) from the field that included a 3-for-18 (16.7%) performance from beyond the three-point line and a 23-for-28 (82.1%) showing at the free throw line. On the other hand, George Fox was a combined 36-for-67 (53.7%) from the field, 15-for-32 (46.9%) from long distance, and 7-of-13 (53.8%) at the charity stripe.

Corban will step onto the hardwood again on Friday, December 20th, when the Warriors return to Cascade Collegiate Conference action against the visiting Geoducks of The Evergreen State College beginning at approximately 7:30 p.m. inside the C.E. Jeffers Sports Center in Salem.