By Tim Heiduk
January 27, 2021
 
(SANTA BARBARA, Calif.) After a disappointing loss Tuesday night against Saint Katherine, Westmont head coach Landon Boucher's message to his team was to play with a greater sense of urgency from the opening tip. That message was well-received less than 24 hours later.
 
In a rematch against Saint Katherine (2-1), Westmont men's basketball (1-2) flew out of the gates in route to a 117-103 win over the Firebirds on Wednesday evening inside Murchison Gymnasium.
 
"I think from the sick feeling in our stomachs from yesterday, it was easy to get our engines going," Boucher said.
 
The win marks the first win for Westmont this season, as well as the first in Boucher's tenure as head coach. Boucher took over this season from longtime head coach John Moore, who stepped aside from his position after 27 years as Warriors' head coach.
 
"It's not really about me. It's about our team," Boucher said. "In all honesty, I'm more happy for our team to get a win."
 
In the first half, Westmont shot 21-31 (67.7%) from the field, taking as much as a 22-point lead in the opening period. The Warriors ultimately went into the break with a 54-39 advantage, on the backs of Abram Carrasco's 23 points on nine of 12 shooting in the first half.
 
Westmont did not slow down one bit in the second half, putting up another 63 points, as the Warriors registered 117 on the scoreboard, the fifth-highest single-game total in program history.
 
"When we decide to play defense it's easier to get in rhythm offensively, especially for us," Boucher said. "Our team plays its best when we're scoring, but we have to make sure we're playing defense to get our offense going."
 
Despite the impressive offensive showing, Boucher was disappointed with how his team finished the game defensively, allowing Saint Katherine to eclipse the century mark after the visitors scored 64 points in the second half.
 
The Warriors have now given up 100+ points twice this season (although the first one against Concordia Irvine was after two overtimes) and in three of their last four countable games dating back to last season.
 
"As nice as the win was, it kind of left a sour taste in our mouths because we let down," Boucher said. "We acted like there were 30 seconds left when there were still five-and-a-half minutes."
 
Carrasco finished with a career-high 36 points, to go along with eight assists to lead all players in both categories.
 
"I think he was disappointed in his effort yesterday and he was really locked in today, ready to go from the tip," Boucher said of Carrasco, who recorded a stat line of 14 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists on Tuesday night, but only shot three of 12 from the field.
 
Three other Warriors joined Carrasco in double figures on Wednesday, as Ajay Singh tallied 17 points, followed by Jared Brown's 16 and Cade Roth's 11.
 
"I liked how we were passing the ball," Boucher said. "We were really unselfish. Bram had eight assists and as a team we had 18 assists. We were moving the ball, making smart decisions and finding the open man."
 
The Warriors shot a stellar 15-25 (60.0%) from 3-point range, as all five starters and six players overall made multiple triples on the evening. The team shot 64.4% overall from the field.
 
Westmont was initially supposed to begin Golden State Athletic Conference play on Feb. 2 against Hope International, but are now set to do so on Feb. 16 at Vanguard. The Warriors' three games against the Royals that were originally scheduled for next week have been pushed back to Feb. 23, 26 and 27 because of COVID-related issues for Hope.
 
Westmont has added a game against Bethesda on Feb. 9. The two teams were set to play on Wednesday, but that game was postponed because of COVID concerns for the Flames, with Saint Katherine then taking their place.
 
The Warriors are hoping to add a game or two before that scheduled Feb. 9 matchup with Bethesda.
 
"Everybody keeps saying how we have the same team back from last year, but it's a new year and it's an unusual year," Boucher said. "It's not the same team because we lost an All-Conference player in Justin Bessard. It's a new coaching staff. We're just trying to figure out who we are as a team and how we play together as a team, offensively but more important defensively."