Five players scored in double figures and the men’s basketball team shot 66.7 percent from the field in the second half to pull away from ninth-ranked Humboldt State, 92-80, Friday night in the second game of the Elgin Baylor Tipoff Classic at the .
Sophomore Ricky Berry () led the way with a career-high 18 points, hitting three shots from behind the three-point line and capping the victory with a dunk in the final minute. Leigh Swanson (, ) scored 17 points and also earned three steals, and Mike Boxley () also reached a career high with 14 points on 4-of-5 shooting from the field and 5-of-8 shooting from the free throw line.
Swanson scored five points in the first 1:20 as scored the first seven points of the game. responded, going on a 7-0 run of its own to tie the game at 9-9. The first half remained tight, as there were nine lead changes and eight ties, including at halftime as Shaun Burl () hit a layup with two seconds remaining to pull the Redhawks even with the Lumberjacks 41-41 going into the locker rooms.
(0-1) took the early lead in the second half, going up by as much as seven points (58-51) with 14:36 remaining in the half. went on a 14-4 run over the next seven minutes, as Michael Wright (, ) scored six points and Chris Gweth (, ) hit back-to-back layups to give the lead for good.
The Redhawks were able to pull away thanks to eight points by Ryan Coldren () over a two and a half minute span. Coldren played only 13 minutes due to foul trouble, but still finished with 12 points and six rebounds, while Burl finished with ten points and four assists. Wright earned eight points and two steals in the game, and Gweth notched six points and three steals during the night.
Devin Peal led the Lumberjacks with 22 points and 12 rebounds, shooting 9-of-13 from the field, while Cy Vandermeer earned 15 points, five rebounds, and four blocked shots. shot 50.9 percent from the field, but missed 11 free throw attempts and committed 19 turnovers. On the other hand, committed only 12 turnovers and shot 71.4 percent from the free throw line.
In an exciting opener to the weekend classic, ’s University needed overtime to defeat Cal State Stanislaus, 116-113. Jake Linton, who always seems to perform well in the , led all players with 31 points and seven assists, while Brendan Campbell earned 24 points and six rebounds for the Saints. Calvin Westbrook led Cal State Stanislaus with 25 points, with Duane Jones scoring 20 points and Heath Colvin contributing 18 points.
The Elgin Baylor Classic continues Saturday with another men’s basketball doubleheader at the . At 5 p.m., faces Saint Martin’s University, followed by the matchup between and Cal State Stanislaus scheduled for 7 p.m.