MBK: Warriors suffer first defeat

Westmont suffered its first basketball loss of the 2015-16 campaign on Monday night, falling on the road to Azusa Pacific, 100-86.

“I thought we played very well in the first half,” said Westmont head coach John Moore. “We shot 53 percent from the floor and 57 percent from beyond the three-point line and only had two turnovers.”

As a result, the Warriors took a 51-43 lead into the locker room at halftime.

“In the second half, however, we turned the ball over way too much (10 times) and shot just 34 percent,” said the coach. “You can’t win a game when you have that shooting percentage in the second half.”

The Warriors (2-1) also struggled defensively in the second half, allowing the NCAA Division 2 Cougars to make 74.1 percent of their field goal attempts (20 of 27). Azusa only missed one of 16 shots from within the arc in the final frame.

“Defensively, we are a better team than that,” asserted Moore.

Cory Blau tallied 21 points for the Warriors while also dishing off four assists. Gerald Karczewski added 14 points while Sean McDonnell and David Gunn added 13 more apiece.