SALEM, Ore. – The Corban University men's basketball team came up against a red-hot shooting (RV) Warner Pacific College team on Saturday evening in the C.E. Jeffers Sports Center, losing 96-78 to the Knights. The loss leaves the Warriors at 5-5 in Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) play after the first half of conference action, while the Knights head into the second half of CCC play with a 7-3 mark.
Both team began the game shooting very well, as the first 10 shots of the game went through the hoop as the contest was off to a competitive start. The problem came for Corban when a few shots did not drop, however, and Warner Pacific continued its offensive onslaught, powering through the first half shooting 70.6% overall from the field en route to taking a 58-33 lead into the intermission. As a team, the Knights also made six three-pointers during the first 20 minutes.
Corban shot the ball fairly efficiently as well during the first stanza at a 53.8% clip, but the Warriors could not keep up with the Knights' fast-pace offensive effort.
In the second stanza, the Warriors tried on multiple occasions to cut into the Warner Pacific lead, but the Knights never let Corban get too close, ultimately building a lead up to 34 points midway through the second half.
A bright spot for the Warriors in the second stanza was junior guard Taylor Fox (Astoria, Ore.), as Fox nailed multiple long-range efforts, giving Corban some life. In addition, senior forward Cyrus Ward (Gig Harbor, Wash.) was efficient from the field all evening long, scoring 21 points on 9-for-15 shooting.
For the Knights, a balanced offensive attack led to the 18-point win, with De'Jon Bowman recording a double-double with 20 points and 12 boards, while Collin Malcolm notched 14 points. Additionally, four other players scored in double-digits for the Knights.
"We struggled sticking with the game plan in the first half which was to not take early shots, get the ball inside, and stop their transition," said Corban head coach Steve Masten. "We did a much better job in the second half, but we were down too far by then. Overall, we're struggling putting two strong games together and we need to fix that as we head into the second half of league play."
The Knights (11-7, 7-3 CCC) gained a significant advantage from their bench, as they outscored the Warriors, 54-36, and Warner Pacific won the rebounding battle, 36-27.
Sophomore guard AJ Monterossi (Beaverton, Ore.) scored 12 points on the evening, as did Fox, while junior guard Caleb Herzberg (Beaverton, Ore.) chipped in 13 points.
Corban (11-7, 5-5 CCC) takes to the road for next two weeks, with next week's contests coming on the road at College of Idaho and Eastern Oregon University. Tipoffs are set for 6:30 p.m. against the Yotes, and 7:30 p.m. against the Mountaineers.
