Aaron Schmick, all 5-11 of him, scored his only two points of the game by stealing a cross-court pass and driving for a layup with 3 seconds left, clinching a 68-64 win for the George Fox University Bruins over the Whittier College Poets in a non-conference men’s basketball game Monday night here at the Graham Athletics Center.
George Fox took a 5-4 lead two minutes into the game on a three-pointer by Phil Heu-Weller and stretched it to as many as 18 before the half was over. Heu-Weller hit another three en route to 12 first-half points with 1:43 left in the half for the Bruins’ largest lead of 37-19, and he canned another from long range to give the visitors a 40-24 advantage at the break.
The Poets battled back in the second half by sinking 17-24 from the field, a red-hot 70.8%. A 13-2 run, capped by a Brandon Robinson layup, brought the Poets to a 52-52 tie, and another Robinson layin with 6:57 left put the home team ahead 54-52. A three-point play by Chris Parker with 6:36 to go put the Bruins back in front, however, and they would not trail again.
A pair of free throws by Heu-Weller gave George Fox a 65-57 lead with 2:40 to go, but the Poets responded with a pair of baskets by Raphael Farlough around a three by Tim Fanning, cutting the margin to one at 65-64 with 28 seconds left. Melvin’s free throw made it 66-64 George Fox with 23 seconds left, setting the Poets up for a chance to tie or win. Schmick, however, stepped in front of a pass by Marcus Gibson and raced downcourt for the biggest bucket of the game, preserving the Bruins’ 6th win in a row.
Heu-Weller and Parker, who was 7-9 from the field, led the Bruins with 18 points apiece, Melvin added 14, and Brent Satern chipped in with 11. Schmick, the Bruins’ second-leading scorer at 14.9 points a game, had trouble scoring on a 1-9 shooting night, but found his teammates who could score, passing out 7 assists. Parker topped the Bruins, who were out-rebounded 34-31, on the boards with 7.
Farlough was the only Poet in double figures with 22 points and also led his team with 6 rebounds. Chris Dalley handed out 10 assists.
George Fox, off to its best start since the 1998-99 team opened up 8-1, is now 7-1 overall. Whittier dropped to 3-4 overall. The Bruins continue their three-game swing through southern California Tuesday at 7:30 p.m., taking on the University of La Verne in a game scheduled for Claremont, Calif., at Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges due to ongoing renovations at La Verne’s gym. The Poets are off until Friday, Dec. 30, when they host Willamette University at 7:30 p.m.
Official Basketball Box Score -- GAME TOTALS -- FINAL STATISTICS
George Fox vs Whittier
12/19/05 7:30 pm at Whittier, Calif.
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VISITORS: George Fox 7-1
TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS
## Player Name FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO BLK S MIN
20 Melvin, Ben......... f 6-11 0-2 2-4 2 2 4 1 14 1 1 0 1 28
23 Heu-Weller, Phil.... f 5-15 5-12 3-4 1 5 6 3 18 0 0 1 0 33
42 Szalay, Scott....... c 1-3 0-0 1-2 0 2 2 5 3 0 1 1 0 16
05 Schmick, Aaron...... g 1-9 0-6 0-0 0 6 6 1 2 7 2 0 2 34
24 Satern, Brent....... g 3-5 3-4 2-2 0 1 1 1 11 5 3 0 2 33
03 Mansfield, Nate..... 0-1 0-1 0-0 0 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 1 18
33 Parker, Chris....... 7-9 0-0 4-5 3 4 7 3 18 1 4 0 0 32
55 Metzler, Mark....... 1-2 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 6
Team................ 2 2 4
Totals.............. 24-55 8-25 12-17 8 23 31 14 68 15 12 2 6 200
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 15-34 44.1% 2nd Half: 9-21 42.9% Game: 43.6% DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half: 6-18 33.3% 2nd Half: 2-7 28.6% Game: 32.0% REBS
F Throw % 1st Half: 4-6 66.7% 2nd Half: 8-11 72.7% Game: 70.6% 2
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HOME TEAM: Whittier 3-4
TOT-FG 3-PT REBOUNDS
## Player Name FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF TP A TO BLK S MIN
22 Crowley, Aaron...... f 2-4 0-1 1-2 0 4 4 1 5 1 0 0 1 20
32 Farlough, Raphael... f 10-18 0-0 2-4 4 2 6 1 22 0 0 1 1 27
44 Taylor, Anthony..... c 1-5 0-0 4-6 1 2 3 4 6 3 2 1 0 17
10 Mesaros, Matt....... g 2-3 1-1 1-1 0 0 0 2 6 0 2 0 0 27
12 Dalley, Chris....... g 1-2 0-1 0-1 0 3 3 2 2 10 2 0 1 25
04 Fanning, Tim........ 2-5 1-3 0-0 1 1 2 1 5 4 0 0 0 22
20 Gibson, Marcus...... 1-6 1-5 0-0 0 3 3 1 3 4 2 0 1 25
25 Retzlaff, David..... 0-0 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 4
34 Robinson, Brandon... 3-5 0-0 1-2 1 3 4 1 7 0 2 0 0 16
42 Stell, Brett........ 4-5 0-0 0-0 1 4 5 2 8 3 1 0 2 17
TEAM................ 4 4
Totals.............. 26-53 3-11 9-16 8 26 34 15 64 25 12 2 6 200
TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 9-29 31.0% 2nd Half: 17-24 70.8% Game: 49.1% DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half: 2-7 28.6% 2nd Half: 1-4 25.0% Game: 27.3% REBS
F Throw % 1st Half: 4-5 80.0% 2nd Half: 5-11 45.5% Game: 56.3% 3
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Officials:
Technical fouls: George Fox-None. Whittier-None.
Attendance: 125
Score by Periods 1st 2nd Total
George Fox.................... 40 28 - 68
Whittier...................... 24 40 - 64