Ricker made all but one of his shots from the floor, hitting on nine of 10. Senior Casey Nelson reached double figures for the 18th time this year with his 11 points, hitting three of five shots and five of nine free-throws.
Five other seniors were also playing in their final game as Missionaries. Matt Airy finished with nine points, Kyle Dalvit six, Jake Pounds five, Cale Will four, and Greg Caldwell grabbed three rebounds.
Mark Gayman led all scorers in the game, with 28 points on 11 of 20 shooting. Gayman also had 13 rebounds for a double-double. Aaron Schmick had 14 points, and Ben Melvin finished with 10.
The teams traded baskets to begin the game, with five ties in the first five minutes. Trailing 10-9, the Bruins ran off 11 straight, taking a 20-10 lead seven minutes in. Whitman rebounded, and Ricker knocked down a jumper to make the score 22-20 in favor of the Bruins with just over 10 minutes remaining in the half. George Fox extended its lead to seven with 6:45 to play, and Whitman went into the half down, 37-32.
Six minutes into the second period, the Missionaries found themselves down double-digits at 50-40. Whitman scored seven straight, though, capped by a breakaway dunk by Nick Parker. With 6:36 remaining on the clock, the Bruins held a 64-57 advantage. The Missionaries went on another run, scoring eight straight, taking a one-point lead. With 1:29 to go, Nelson connected on a layup and gave Whitman a 70-69 lead. Neither team could score as time wound down until Will put in the final basket for a 72-69 win.
In its final game of the year, the Missionaries shot 49.1 percent from the floor. Whitman was tops in the conference in shooting percentage, led by Ricker at 57.6 percent.
George Fox vs Whitman 2/28/04 8:00pm at Walla Walla, Wash. (Sherwood Center) At Walla Walla, Wash. (Sherwood Center) WHITMAN 72, GEORGE FOX 69 GEORGE FOX (7-18, 3-13) Gayman, Mark 11-20 1-2 28; Schmick, Aaron 6-11 0-0 14; Melvin, Ben 4-7 2-2 10; Wadlow, Bryan 3-8 0-0 8; Szalay, Scott 0-1 5-6 5; Yeager, Brett 1-6 0-0 2; Parker, Chris 1-3 0-0 2. Totals 26-56 8-10 69. WHITMAN (7-18, 3-13) Ricker, Greg 9-10 2-4 21; Nelson, Casey 3-5 5-9 11; Airy, Matt 3-6 2-2 9; Kofler, Erik 3-7 2-2 8; Dalvit, Kyle 2-5 2-2 6; Parker, Nick 3-6 0-0 6; Pounds, Jacob 2-3 1-2 5; Will, Cale 1-5 2-2 4; Peterson, Mike 0-1 2-2 2; Caldwell, Greg 0-5 0-0 0. Totals 26-53 18-25 72. George Fox.................... 37 32 - 69 Whitman....................... 32 40 - 72 3-point goals-George Fox 9-22 (Gayman, Mark 5-8; Schmick, Aaron 2-6; Wadlow, Bryan 2-6; Yeager, Brett 0-2), Whitman 2-18 (Ricker, Greg 1-2; Airy, Matt 1-4; Parker, Nick 0-2; Pounds, Jacob 0-1; Will, Cale 0-4; Peterson, Mike 0-1; Caldwell, Greg 0-4). Fouled out--George Fox-None, Whitman-None. Rebounds-George Fox 30 (Gayman, Mark 13), Whitman 33 (Nelson, Casey 8). Assists-George Fox 11 (Melvin, Ben 3), Whitman 7 (Will, Cale 2). Total fouls-George Fox 20, Whitman 13. A-521