Despite leading the game for more than 28 minutes, Westmont men’s basketball’s season came to an end tonight as the Warriors fell to Fresno Pacific by a score of 68-64 in the first round of the GSAC Men’s Basketball Tournament.
As a result of tonight’s game at Murchison Gymnasium, both teams now have a record of 20-10 on the season. Fresno Pacific will advance to the semifinals against top-seeded Concordia on Saturday night.
“In my 18 years here and 23 years as a head coach, it is certainly one of the hardest losses I have ever had,” said Westmont head coach John Moore after the game. “What I am most disappointed about is that these seniors didn’t get a chance to go back to the national tournament in their four years here.
“We played hard and Fresno Pacific played hard,” continued the coach. “I think there were two pivotal points. We led by 11 in the first half and momentum was going our direction. But we missed finding shooters, gave them some easy baskets and turned it over two or three times.
“In the second half, I thought we executed at the point in which we took a nine point lead. I thought we would increase the lead to double-digits, but a couple of layups rimmed out and they made a three-pointer that stuck in the back of the rim and then fell in. And there were a couple of offensive rebounds at crucial times that really hurt us.”
Fresno Pacific jumped out to a 5-0 lead and led for the first five and one-half minutes of the ballgame. Down 12-6 with 16:28 remaining in the first half, the Warriors put together a 10-0 run over the next four minutes to go up 16-12. Sophomore Preston Branson started the run after getting his own rebound and scoring on the second-chance opportunity. Senior Evan Haines scored on a jumper with an assist from Branson then assisted on a jumper by senior Blake Bender to tie the game at 12. Bender then made two free throws and added another jumper to complete the run.
Leading by two with ten and one-half minutes left before intermission, the Warriors constructed a 9-0 run to take their biggest lead of the game. Jumpers by Branson and T.J. Lipold were followed by a layup by Haines. Lipold then nailed a three-point shot, putting the Warriors up 27-16 with 7:34 to play.
With 1:59 left on the first half clock, the Warriors retained their 11-point cushion. But Fresno Pacific produced a 9-0 run to close out the half, making the halftime score 34-32 in favor of Westmont.
The game remained close throughout the opening minutes of the second half. With 13:36 left in regulation, the Warriors held a 44-43 lead. Back-to-back three-pointers by Niko Brooks and Lipold, and a layup by Branson put the Warriors up 52-43 with 11:16 remaining.
Fresno Pacific, however, responded with back-to-back three-pointers by Jordan Wild and Adam Kado and two free throws by Kendall Holms to draw within one (52-51) with 9:38 remaining. Brooks stretched the Warrior lead back to four (55-51) when he struck from beyond the arc. However, the Sunbirds scored the next 11 points and took a seven point lead (62-55) with 2:22 left in the game.
The Warriors drew to within one point on a tip-in by Dan Rasp with 1:41 to go. However, a layup by Holmes and a dunk by Rickey Vick with 39 seconds left, put the Sunbirds back up by five (66-61). With eight seconds left, Dan Rasp gave the Warriors another chance by completing and-one play. Fresno Pacific’s Deshaun Legree was fouled and sent to the line with four seconds left and made both attempts to account for the final score.
Rasp led the Warriors in scoring, tallying 17 points and nine rebounds. Bender added 12 points and 14 rebounds, recording his GSAC-leading fourteenth double-double of the year. Branson also contributed 12 points and had seven assists. Lipold added another 10 points and four rebounds while Brooks had nine points and six rebounds.
The Sunbirds were led by Wild with 19 points and seven rebounds. Holmes contributed 14 points and matched Wild’s rebound total. Kado added another 12 points while Jerante Morgane score 11 points and pulled down five boards.
After the game, Moore paid tribute to his three seniors.
They are all three wonderful men,” said Moore. “Dan Rasp is the most humble superstar. He was a phenomenal player as a freshman. He was the Tom Byron Classic MVP twice in a row. He was all GSAC Player his sophomore and junior year and an honorable mention All-American last year. I’m certain he was the best freshman I have every coached. He had as much poise as a freshman as a lot of the upper classmen that I have coached. He has been a stalwart as a player. He cared so deeply for his teammates that he kept his accolades in the background.”
Rasp finished his collegiate career with 1,575 points, which makes him sixth on Westmont career scoring list. Rasp’s 555 career field goals ranks ninth in Westmont history while his 436 free throws puts him in third.
“Evan was probably hurting a lot the last three years without us knowing it,” said Moore. “His family history of bad knees came to the forefront, unfortunately, his senior year. Evan is guy that is so likable. Loyalty is a big factor for Evan. He has such a huge heart.”
Haines completed his career with 128 blocked shots, second only to Tim Tewksbury (1980-83) who tallied 131. His 1.1 blocks-per-game average ranks third in the career record book. As a junior, Haines set the record for blocked shots in a single season at 54. On January 16, 2010, Haines set the Warrior record for most blocks in a single game, posting eight blocks against the Sea Lions of Point Loma Nazarene. Haines also finished in the top-20 in career rebounding, pulling down 570 boards over his four years.
“In coming years, I will tell as many stories about Blake Bender as I tell about any other player I have coached,” said Moore. “Blake and I didn’t always see eye to eye in his early years. I have seen in Blake the growth and perseverance and the ability to move forward. He has become a man who pressed on even when he didn’t agree with what I was asking him to do. He did it nonetheless and became much better as a person and a better player because of that.”
Bender’s name also adorns the Westmont record book. He finished 13th in scoring with 1,067 points. His 299 made free throws ranks him 14th in Warrior lore and his 642 rebounds places him at No. 11. He also ranks 11th in career steals at 134.
