The University of Redlands men's basketball team suffered a difficult loss to the visiting Panthers of Chapman University in tonight's championship game of the 63rd Annual Lee Fulmer Memorial Tournament, falling by a score of 57-70. Chapman recovered from a slow start quicker than the Bulldogs and ran away with the lead in the second stanza, leading to back-to-back tournament titles for the Panthers.

In an evenly matched first half, neither team shot particularly well and relied on its defense to stay in the game.

The Panthers broke the 25-all halftime tie by coming out as an incredibly efficient scoring squad while Redlands suffered an offensive drought through the first five minutes of the second stanza. During this span, Chapman mustered a 12-point lead with strong play by Justin Riley leading the way.

A few minutes later, the Panthers extended their lead to 20 as Redlands continued to struggle offensively.

The Bulldogs eventually cut it to 13 when sophomore guard Brian Kuklok (Poway, CA) knocked down one of his two three-pointers on the night.

But Chapman provided the dagger in Redlands' comeback efforts by hitting back-to-back baskets from long range as Brandon Lin and Riley stepped up. In addition, the Panthers converted five of their eight free throws down the stretch.

Overall, the Panthers shot 52.4%, which included an incredible 82.4% display during the second half.

The Bulldogs managed a 29.6% showing for the game.

The rebounding battle was tied at 33 each with Redlands actually capturing 11 more offensive boards.

For Chapman (6-1), Riley finished with a game-high 17 points, five rebounds and three blocks. Ben Ricard came off the bench for 15 points and seven boards, while Max Piner rounded out the double-digit scorers with 12.

Redlands (2-4) gained 16 points from sophomore guard Tristan Kirk (Redlands, CA) to go along with seven rebounds and two assists. Senior forward Matt Dietrich (Phoenix, AZ) provided a 14-point effort for the Bulldogs.

In the third-place game, Whittier College held off a late push by UC Santa Cruz to capture an exciting 70-65 victory. Despite Ryan Matsuoka's 26-point performance, the Banana Slugs could not maintain their only lead of the second half, which came at 57-55 with 7:54 left on the clock. Poet Damon Perry countered Matsuoka's showing with 26 points of his own, which was complemented Greg Preer's 15 and Willie Mebane's 14.

During the consolation championship, West Coast Baptist College garnered an early 12-point lead and never gave up control of the game, defeating Southwestern College (AZ) by a score of 81-62. Southwestern cut it to three with 6:38 remaining when Jordan Augustine converted a lay-up and the foul shot. However, West Coast answered with three straight three-pointers to pull away. Akeem Smith hit two of his four during this span and finished with 32 points. Colton Cochran and Carlos Johnson added 16 and 15, respectively.

Finally, in today's seventh-place showdown, Caltech garnered its first win of the season by downing American Sports University in a 74-67 decision. The Beavers erupted in the first half for a 20-point lead on the heels of five three-pointers and 11 made free throws. The Fighting Eagles put up a valiant fight in the second frame, cutting the Beavers' lead to five with 5:53 remaining. Big scoring plays in the final minutes allowed American Sports to make it a competitive final but Caltech took care of the ball and made the most of its opportunities to preserve the win. Beaver Ryan Elmquist provided a 25-point performance to lead his team, while Mike Edwards added 19 and Todd Cramer posted a double with 15 points and 14 rebounds. American Sports gained 18 from Randell Blackman, with TR Wilson chipping in 16 points and eight boards. Michael Jagger supplied 13 points and six rebounds.

Following tonight's championship game, the All-Tournament team was announced:

Sportsmanship Award – Ryan Elmquist, Caltech

MVP – Griffin Ramme, Chapman

Tristan Kirk, Redlands

Justin Riley, Chapman

Ryan Matsuoka, UC Santa Cruz

DaMon Perry, Whittier

Akeem Smith, West Coast Baptist

For complete box scores, please log on to the tournament web site at http://www.goredlands.com/sports/mbkb/2010-11/files/Fulmer.