By Jacob Norling
December 10, 2022
(SANTA BARBARA, Calif.) Westmont Men's Basketball (8-5, 2-3 GSAC) dropped their fourth in a row on Saturday night, this time falling to the Vanguard Lions (5-4, 1-3) by a score of 76-61. Westmont's inability to convert offensively cost them, with the Warriors making just 25 of 63 from the field (39.7%) and five of 27 from 3-point range (18.5%).
As the Warriors now enter a month-long stretch without a GSAC contest, the team currently stands as the six-seed in the conference standings.
"It feels like there's a lot of room for improvement," said Westmont head coach
Landon Boucher. "Shooting five of 26 from three in another close game is a sign that if we can improve on the little things on both ends, we can beat anybody. Right now, we're having a hard time getting organized on offense. For us to score 61 again, it just feels like we can do a whole lot better.
"Hopefully over the next few weeks we can have some great practices together and improve collectively as a team. Hopefully with a few weeks away from GSAC games, we can get to work and figure out how to pull these GSAC games out."
In a half where scoring was at a premium, the Warriors made just three of their first 13 field goal attempts, allowing Vanguard to lead 15-7 after the first 10 minutes. Then, with 9:45 to play in the period, a mid-range jumper from
Amir Davis sparked an 8-1 run that was capped off by a three-pointer from
Drew Ramirez, pulling Westmont within one at 16-15.
While Westmont's shooting remained far from hot, the Warriors' defense allowed them the opportunity to hang with the Lions. At one point, from the 13:25 mark to the 7:55 mark, the Warriors held the Lions scoreless for over five minutes. Later on, with 4:50 left in the half, an aggressive
Tone Patton Sr. fought inside the paint for a layup, giving Westmont their first lead of the evening at 19-18.
Following Patton's layup, the Lions outscored the Warriors 11-6 for the rest of the period, ultimately taking a 29-25 lead into halftime. At intermission, Westmont had made just 11 of 33 from the field (33.3%), and two of 16 from 3-point range (12.5%).
In the first 70 seconds of the second half, Westmont went on an explosive 7-0 run, waking up the Murchison Gym as they went into a Vanguard timeout leading 32-29. However, the squad's streakiness continued. After three field goals in the half's first minute-plus, Westmont converted only twice more over the next seven minutes.
While Westmont went cold during the stretch, Vanguard took a 47-40 lead with 11:27 remaining. With 9:48 to play, Patton hit a 3-pointer to pull Westmont within five at 50-45, and on the next trip down, Davis collected a bucket to make it a one possession game.
The 50-47 deficit was as close as the Warriors could get for the remainder of the contest. With 4:00 left, and Westmont trailing 60-54,
Cade Roth was unable to land a 3-pointer, making Westmont just five of 23 from long range. Following the miss, Vanguard proceeded to score on their next two possessions, stretching their advantage to double-digits at 64-54.
A dagger came at the 1:32 mark, when the Lions converted their eighth 3-pointer in 14 attempts, once again giving them a double-digit lead at 69-59. Over the final 90 seconds, the Warriors were forced to send the Lions to the charity stripe. From there, Vanguard put the game on ice and won it by a score of 76-61.
"It's one day at a time," said a forward looking Boucher. "We have to worry about today and improve today, and then worry about tomorrow when it gets here. We've beaten some really nice teams this year, but the GSAC has proved that it's as good as we thought it was going to be. We have to move forward every day and keep getting better."
Westmont does not return to GSAC play until the 5th of January when they will begin their Northern California road trip with a contest at William Jessup. Before then, the Warriors have an exhibition scheduled against Utah Tech on December 19 in St. George, Utah.
The highlight of Westmont's month-long hiatus from conference play is the return of the Tom Byron Classic, which will see its 44th annual tournament begin on December 29. On the 29th and 30th, Westmont Men's Basketball will welcome Vanguard, Carroll (Mont.), and British Columbia inside Murchison Gym for the final games of 2022.
Links to tickets and live coverage will be available on the Westmont Athletics website.
