By Christy Cain

(SANTA BARBARA, Calif.) In front of a packed house of friends, family and alumni the Westmont men's basketball team pulled out a last minute 64-60  overtime win against Biola University.

After the nice words were said, awards were handed out and seniors were recognized, the men took the court with determination in their eyes. They hit the ground running, but seemingly could not hit a shot. The men went 8-23 from the field in the first half –only making one three point shot. While the Warriors got off to a slow start, with only a score of 21-19 at the half, they pushed hard in the final twenty minutes only to send the game into an overtime win.

"It is an emotional night," opened head coach John Moore. "You have your challenges with a night like this because of everything that is going on.  Biola did a very nice job of playing the type of defense that they needed to.  Our guys weathered the storm and did a good job of taking the lead at halftime."

Coming into the second half, the men seemed to rally and put some points on the board. They started to work the ball down to senior Daniel Carlin who was up against some of the biggest defenders the Warriors have seen yet this season. That being said, the Aussie notched another double-double of the season with a team high of 20 points and 11 rebounds.

"I thought our two seniors Daniel Carlin and Nate Marsing had a large impact on tonight" continued Moore.  "Nate made five points in a row, including a big three late in the game. Daniel was 9-11 and had a double-double. I would give half of the game ball to each of those guys." Marsing ended with a total of eight points, five rebounds and a pat on the back for the most ferocious defense on the court.

While it was senior night, the overtime win seemingly rested on the shoulders of freshmen Jerry "Ice-In-the veins" Karczewski who made clutch play after clutch play in the five extra minutes of the game. "I think some people would argue with me about not giving the game ball to Jerry Karczewski. He had all seven of his points in overtime—four of which were clutch free throws." He is a player who continues to not be moved by the conditions on the court. He knows what needs to be done, and when the game is on the line, Jerry knows exactly how to finish the job.

"Finishing like this on alumni night, with an overtime win with the fans that we had, l am convinced that they will keep coming back since they saw the great basketball that we played tonight. You could not put a better cherry on top of a sundae than tonight for our fans," explained John Moore. " Coaches, on the other hand, don't want it to come down to this, but our guys are clutch performers and the gym was electric because of it."

With this win, the Warriors wrap up regular season play with an overall record of 20-9, 12-4 in GSAC. The men will host The Masters for the first round of GSAC Tournament play this Thursday March 5 at 7:30 p.m. in Murchison Gymnasium.

As regular season play comes to an end, there are many unknowns about the weeks ahead. But if tonight is any indication, the days ahead will be fast paced, high energy and (hopefully) full of victories. Let the madness begin!