By Jacob Norling
December 2, 2021
 
(GLENDALE, Ariz.) After opening up their conference slate against the Golden State Athletic Conference's preseason favorites, the Westmont Warriors (9-0, 2-0 GSAC) did more than just hold their own. In fact, they defeated The Master's on opening night in Santa Barbara, and tonight, they defeated #6 Arizona Christian (9-2, 1-2) by a score of 82-80 in Glendale.
 
It came down to the final minute, but Westmont's new-look squad continued to display a collective resilience, and handed ACU their first conference-loss at home since February 29, 2020.
 
"It's a big feat to win in that kind of fashion in their place," said Westmont head coach Landon Boucher. "They play really well at home and they're not just talented but they're deep as well. Our guys put together a gutsy effort and I'm proud of them for getting it done.
 
"There were a lot of times down the stretch where it would have been easy to give up. They made run after run in the second half, but our guys stuck with it and stayed together."
 
The climax of the night came with 37 seconds left, when the game was tied at 77. With the shot clock winding down, Westmont's captain, Cade Roth, began to drive to the basket, then held up as he began to take a jumper left of the elbow. Roth then slowed his momentum, and wore contact from ACU's Dominic Gonzales, before releasing his shot.
 
The whistle blew for the foul, and Roth's shot banked off the glass and in to give the Warriors the lead. While his bench exploded, Roth remained composed, and knocked down the ensuing free throw. Thirty-seven seconds later, Westmont officially remained undefeated.
 
"We felt really confident with the ball in Cade's hands," offered Boucher. "Up until that point, we were having trouble making plays down the stretch, but we felt that if Cade had the ball he could find a way to score or make a play with it. Ultimately, he made a really tough shot, and on top of that, he finished the free throw which was huge."
 
Ajay Singh and Nate Meithof led the way for Westmont offensively, with Singh collecting a game-high 24 points, and Meithof adding 20 of his own. Roth scored nine points and collected a game-high 10 rebounds to go along with a game-high six assists.
 
Jared Brown contributed with 15 points and collected a pair of steals, while Meithof led all players with four steals of his own.
 
"Ajay was big time tonight," noted Boucher. "ACU's Robby Wilson is a three-year starter and a first team all-conference player. Ajay had a really nice game against him, and it's not a one-on-one game, but Ajay did a really good job keeping him off the rebound and he made some really big shots too."
 
In the first half, Singh scored 14 points and led the Warriors to a 42-32 lead going into intermission. Then, in the second half, Westmont looked poised to stretch their lead further for good.
 
With 16:23 left to play, and Westmont clinging on to a 46-42 advantage, Meithoff drained a three that started a 12-2 run for the Warriors. Eventually, it was Roth who bookended the run with another 3-pointer to give Westmont a game-high 58-44 advantage with 13:53 to play.
 
Then, Arizona Christian began to chip away. It took nearly the entire rest of the half, but with 1:25 to play, Arizona Christian's Bryce Davis converted a free-throw to knot things at 77, and had an opportunity to put the Firestorm up with another free throw to go.
 
However, Davis missed the second shot, and the next man to score was Roth with 37 seconds to go, when he put the Warriors up for good.
 
"We expected that run to come," said Boucher. "There was no way anyone on our staff or team thought we were going to go in there and break it open to 20 or 30 points.
 
"Jared and Cade both did a really good job dealing with full court pressure that whole game, and as a team we rolled with the punches well. ACU closed that lead with a lot of nice plays, and honestly, I thought they played really well tonight. That had to be a really fun game for a fan because there were a ton of great plays throughout the game."
 
Westmont aims to win their 10th consecutive game to start the season when they take on OUAZ on Saturday in Surprise. Tip-off is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. PST.
 
"One game at a time has been our motto," said Boucher, "because we know our league is going to be so incredibly tough. Right now our job is to get back to the hotel and begin recovery. OUAZ is a really good team that we have a ton of respect for and we're going to have an important day in front of us as we prepare to match up with those guys."