Led by senior forward Eric Radford's (Federal Way, WA) career-high 21 points, the University of Redlands men's basketball team battled it out with Pomona-Pitzer Colleges in a Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) showdown on Wednesday in Currier Gym. With the opponents converting more than twice as many free-throws and three more three-pointers, the Bulldogs struggled to shut down the Sagehens en route to the 77-83 defeat.
Redlands came out on fire, knocking down its first three shots of the night to gain an early five-point lead against Pomona-Pitzer.
Sophomore forward Kyle Milligan (Portland, OR) converted the second of his two free-throw attempts before Radford hit the Maroon and Gray's fourth consecutive shot from the field.
However, the Sagehens quickly answered by scoring on a second-chance opportunity and then hitting their first of 10 three-pointers in the game to take a 12-10 lead with 15:23 to go in the first half.
The teams continued to trade punches throughout the opening frame, with neither squad gaining much of an edge, until Radford converted back-to-back shots, including one from beyond the arc, to make it 31-26 for the Bulldogs.
But the Sagehens eagerly regained the momentum when Xavyr Moss hit a bucket from long range and Nick Nordale earned an and-one play for a 32-31 advantage with 4:55 left on the clock.
Again, the score went back and forth, and again the Bulldogs fought to build another five-point lead. Nonetheless, Pomona-Pitzer answered with success at the charity stripe and its seventh three-pointer of the half, making it 42 apiece with 40 seconds left.
On Redlands' final possession of the stanza, a jump-ball was called in favor of the Bulldogs with two seconds left on the shot clock. Senior guard Ricky Peetz (Redlands, CA) then bounced the ball off of the back of a Sagehen player and took it to the hoop for a quick score, putting the Maroon and Gray up, 44-42, when the teams retreated to the locker room at halftime.
During the opening period, the Bulldogs shot an impressive 59.3%, as compared to Pomona-Pitzer's 35.5% showing. Redlands also knocked down five shots from beyond the arc. But, the visitors managed to convert seven three-pointers and 11 of their 12 free-throw attempts.
The Sagehens turned the tables on the Maroon and Gray in the second half, hitting a remarkable 60% of their shots. This strong offense allowed them to build their largest lead of the game at 66-57 with 9:57 to go in the game.
About two minutes later, Redlands' deficit remained at nine points, but Radford fought his way to the basket for a tough lay-up and the foul. This three-point play breathed new life into the Bulldogs.
Following a Sagehen bucket from deep, senior forward Ian Gordon (Bellevue, WA) answered for Redlands with a big jumper, before Radford scored off of Sagehen turnover to make it a three-point game with 6:12 remaining.
However, that was as close as it would get, with the Sagehens converting yet another three-pointer to extend their lead back to six points.
Despite a few good looks from beyond the arc, Redlands was unable to close the gap.
Pomona-Pitzer finished the night with a 45.8% performance, while Redlands dropped to 43.7%. The Sagehens went 19-for-29 from the line, while the Bulldogs converted eight of their 11 chances at the charity stripe.
In addition to Radford's 21 points, the Bulldogs gained double-digit scoring from two players off the bench as Gordon added 13 points to tie his career-high and senior forward Alex Rudd (St. Louis, MO) chipped in 11 points.
Peetz dished out a game-high six assists, while sophomore forward Aljosa Bjekovic (Maribor, Slovenia) pulled in 11 rebounds and scored eight points.
Pomona-Pitzer (14-5, 9-1 SCIAC) was led by Michael Cohen with 28 points. Four other Sagehens supplied 12 or more points.
Redlands (7-11, 3-6 SCIAC) looks to halt its recent skid when it travels to Chapman University on Saturday for a 5 p.m. tilt with the Panthers. Live stats and video are available at http://client.stretchinternet.com/client/chapman.portal#.
