By Jacob Norling
December 8, 2022
 
(FULLERTON, Calif.) Westmont Men's Basketball (8-4, 2-2 GSAC) dropped their third in a row on Thursday night when the Hope International Royals (6-2, 4-1) defeated the Warriors by a score of 76-70. The Royals shot 50% from the field (29-58), while holding Westmont to a clip of 39.4% (26-66), and the Warriors attempted 41 3-pointers on the night while making only 13 (31.7%).
 
Ultimately, the Warriors ended the night only a couple shots shy of a different story.
 
"It's always tough to win at Hope," said Westmont head coach Landon Boucher. "We didn't have enough urgency throughout the whole game. If you look at the story of this game, we got really hot at times, but then we got really cold for long periods of time.
 
"There were several drawn out periods where Hope was able to get stop after stop, and I thought a big part of that was our lack of urgency. We have to finish stops, win loose balls, and make tougher plays to turn things around. Offensively, we need to get organized. Tonight, we were unorganized and settled for okay shots as opposed to good or great shots. It's tough to win like that."
 
In the first 90 seconds of the game the Warriors came out with a burst offensively, going on a 7-0 run before the Royals called an early timeout. Westmont kept momentum early, keeping Hope more than a possession behind for the first 10 minutes of the game.
 
With 9:45 left in the first half, Drew Ramirez knocked down a 3-pointer to give Westmont a 22-15 advantage, keeping the Royals at arm's reach. However, in the period's final 10 minutes, Hope's veteran defense locked down Westmont to flip the script.
 
Following Ramirez' 3-pointer, Westmont scored only six points for the rest of the half, allowing Hope International to go on a 20-6 run in the final 10 minutes. Hope took the lead for good in the period with a 3-pointer at the 3:17 mark, and at halftime, the Royals led the Warriors 35-28.
 
To begin the second half, Westmont finally saw the three start to land again, which allowed them to claw back into the picture. Three-pointers from Jalen Townsell, Cade Roth, and Ramirez got Westmont back within two at 41-39 with 15:30 to play.
 
Then, another shot from downtown by Townsell tied the game at 44 with 13 minutes to play. With 12:34 on the clock, Amir Davis converted a pair of free throws to give Westmont their first lead at 46-44. However, Westmont's swing of momentum was short-lived.
 
For three minutes Westmont hung ahead of the Royals, but with 8:42 to play, a transition dunk following a layup by Hope International gave the home team a 53-48 advantage. With 6:26 to play, Ramirez gave Westmont their last surge of hope with a shot from beyond the arc that made the score 55-53, but in the following minute, things began to unravel.
 
After a pair of layups allowed Hope to push the lead to 59-53, the Warriors committed a crucial turnover on the following possession. In transition, Anthony McIntyre then committed a foul on a Royals' shooter who still converted the basket. The shooter then went to the line and converted a free throw, putting Hope up 60-53 with the finish line in sight.
 
The Warriors fought valiantly to pull the game within three points in the final 30 seconds, but another costly turnover saw their hopes cut short as the Royals hung on by a score of 76-70.
 
"We have to get better," stated Boucher. "That's the bottom line, we have to get a lot better. Individually we have to get better, and collectively as a group, we have to start improving. Our season is far from over, but this isn't okay.
 
"The way we're losing is with an inconsistent effort, and that isn't okay. I think this group is going to peak late. I really do. With that, we can move that peak up with a higher level of urgency. Until that happens, we're going to be stuck in the spot we're in."
 
The Warriors return to action on Saturday night at 7:30 p.m., when they host the Vanguard Lions in Murchison Gym. Saturday's contest will be Westmont' final GSAC game until the New Year, and links to live coverage are available on the Westmont Athletics website.