Matt LeDuc led the Warriors with 12 points in the Golden State Athletic Conference opener for Westmont men’s basketball (3-4, 0-1 GSAC), but the Warriors fell to #9 Concordia (6-1, 2-0) by a score of 67-56 on Thursday night in Irvine.
Westmont held Concordia to 37.3% shooting from the floor while making 45.2% of their own attempts. But Concordia reached the free throw line twice as many times as the Warriors (36 for Concordia, 18 for Westmont), outscoring the Warriors by nine (23-14) from the charity stripe. The Warriors held a slight rebound advantage (32-31) but lost the turnover battle 24-11.
A close battle in the first half ended with a two point Warrior advantage (28-26) at the intermission. The score remained close for the first fourteen minutes of the second half when Concordia held a one-point lead (50-49). But a 9-0 run by Concordia over the next two minutes and 45 seconds secured the win for the Eagles.
Westmont’s home opener will be played on Saturday night against Hope International as part of a men’s and women’s doubleheader. The women will tip-off at 5:30 with the men taking the court at 7:30.
