The Westmont men’s basketball team overcame a late surge by the Vanguard Lions to win 86-77 in Murchison Gym on Saturday Night.
Dan Rasp had quite a show in the first half, putting up 16 points, and finished the game with 18 points and four rebounds. The Warriors went into halftime leading comfortably 44-33, with an exciting second half to come.
It looked like the Warriors were in cruise control in the first half, as a layup with 13:43 to go by Johnny Miller (14 points) gave the Warriors their largest lead of the game at 19. But the Lions would go on a 15-0 run capped off with a jump shot by Mitch Boyce with 8:27 left in the first half. All off a sudden the Warrior lead dwindled to just three points.
Later the Warriors would answer it with a 10-0 run of their own including back-to-back dunks by Miller.
“It felt good” said Miller about the dunks adding “It really helped change momentum.”
Westmont Coach Moore added “John (Miller) seized the opportunity”
Miller was absolutely key in this game as Rasp and Evan Haines ran into foul trouble.
Matt LeDuc also made a huge impact as part of the starting lineup.
“You always gotta be prepared” LeDuc said, after finding out he was going to start that day. “I hit a couple shots early and got momentum.”
LeDuc finished with 23 points, seven rebounds, and three assists.
The Warriors move to 13-5 overall and 5-4 in GSAC, while the Lions fall to 4-11 overall and 3-6 in GSAC. The Warriors next game will be at Azusa Pacific (13-6 overall, 6-3 in GSAC) on Tuesday.
