Vallejo, Calif. – The Corban University men's basketball team almost pulled out its second-straight thrilling victory to open the 2016-17 campaign, but on Saturday evening against Cal State University Maritime, the Warriors came up just short in a 70-69 defeat.
"For the second night in a row, our guys competed at a high level," said Corban head coach Austin Johnson. "Tonight was a true road game and our guys maintained their poise throughout. We got hit with some tough injuries, but we had several players step up to keep us in the game."
Fast forward to late in the contest with 23 seconds remaining, and CSU-Maritime missed a free throw while leading by three points, leaving the door open for Corban to tie the game.
The Warriors looked to the hot hand, junior Chris Martin, and Martin drained a three-pointer with nine seconds remaining in regulation, tying the contest at 69-69.
Knowing it needed a defensive stop to force overtime, the Warriors were unfortunate to have a foul called on them with less than one second remaining. After the fouled Keelhauler missed the first free throw, he made the second, and Corban was unable to get up a final shot, resulting in the defeat.
"While losing on a free throw with less than a second on the clock is a tough pill to swallow, I truly believe tonight was another example of this team's identity of mental toughness and trust," said Johnson. "We will use our day off tomorrow to rest and refocus on another road game Monday night. I have no doubt that our guys that can play will be ready to compete again."
Martin finished the game with 22 points on a 6-for-12 shooting effort off the bench. In addition, freshman Mike Seng scored 12 points on a 4-for-8 effort. From the starting crew, freshman Denis Kirichenko totaled nine points to go with a team-best five boards.
Corban (1-1) returns to the court on Monday for a non-conference contest against Simpson University. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. in Redding, Calif.
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