UR Men's Basketball Tames the Tigers of Occidental in 67-56 Victory

UR Men's Basketball Tames the Tigers of Occidental in 67-56 Victory

The University of Redlands men's basketball team got back on track with a wire-to-wire victory over the Tigers of Occidental College in Wednesday's Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) showdown in Eagle Rock. With a well-rounded offense that included eight different point-scorers, the Bulldogs shot nearly 50% for the game and knocked down 10 three-pointers en route to the 67-56 win over the Tigers.

The Bulldogs jumped out to an 18-point lead in the first half, forcing nine Tiger turnovers while allowing just 10 points in the opening 13 minutes of action.

Led by senior guard Mychal Estrada's (Redlands, CA) first-half trio of threes, Redlands put together an impressive 66.7% long-range performance, leading to 40-28 advantage at the half.

After the Tigers cut their deficit to six points early in the second stanza, senior forward Stephen Call (Portola Valley, CA) drained a three-pointer to put the Bulldogs back up by nine with 13:46 to go.

Occidental continued to keep it a single-digit game until senior center Jack Colston (Dana Point, CA) hit a well-timed three-pointer for the Bulldogs' 61-51 lead.

Junior guard Brian Kuklok (Poway, CA) sealed the victory on a long ball with 1:20 left on the clock, resulting in the final tally of 67-56.

The Bulldogs never relinquished the lead en route to notching its second conference win of the season.

Overall, Redlands converted nearly 60% of its three-pointers as five different players hit shots from beyond the arc.

Junior guard Tristan Kirk (Redlands, CA) led his team with 13 points, while Estrada finished with 12 by going 4-for-6 from long range.

Occidental (7-8, 2-2 SCIAC) gained a game-high 16 points from Jack Hanley, with Deshun McCoy chipping in 14.

Redlands (7-8, 2-2 SCIAC) heads to Caltech on Saturday for a conference doubleheader against the Beavers. The women tip off at 5 p.m., followed by the men's game at approximately 7 p.m.