PASADENA (Dec. 19, 2019) – Offensive efficiency, a collective defensive mindest and a breakout performance on home soil led to the Caltech men's basketball team taking Elmhurst College, the 16th-ranked team in the nation, to the limit on Thursday afternoon.

Caltech started fast, opening the game on a 13-5 run that featured a four-point play from leading scorer Marcus Gee (Santa Monica, Calif. / Santa Monica) and was punctuated by a deep three from sophomore wing Stephen Hei (Newcastle, Wash. / Liberty). After Elmhurst took back the lead with a sizeable run of their own midway through the opening half, the Beavers struck back with a 14-3 run to tie the game up late in the period. The opening 20 minutes proved to be among the best the Caltech has played all season to start a game, despite trailing its ranked opponent by six points at the halfway point.

"We started the game as we believe we can," Head Coach Dr. Oliver Eslinger said. "It doesn't matter who we play. We are going to stick to our defensive principles and execute offensively. It does not matter if we're playing a top-20 team or a top-200 team. We will do what we do."

The emergence of freshman center Pavlos Stavrinides (Nicosia, Cyprus / The English School of Nicosia) further allowed the Beavers to compete with the Blue Jays deep into Wednesday's game. Stavrinides followed up an impressive first half with an equally impressive second half, keeping himself out of foul trouble while totaling 20 points, nine rebounds, six blocks, and two assists on the game. The rookie also shot a perfect 6-for-6 from the free-throw line, with the team shooting a collective 91 percent. The connection between Stavrinides and senior point guard Alec Andrews (Folsom, Calif. / Folsom) was very real, with Andrews tallying three of his eight assists on Stavrinides field goals. Andrews also chipped in with 14 points and a trio of steals. The Beavers shot no less than 39 percent in each half and went on to outshoot the Blue Jays by three percent over the full game while amassing fewer turnovers.

"What we can take away from tonight is that we took it to a team that can win its league, and they knew it," Eslinger said. "I was really impressed with how we took it to them. We didn't do anything different except believe in what we were doing. Elmhurst is an excellent team. They own a win over the defending national champions and we didn't back down."

The Beavers clung to the Blue Jays through the final whistle and managed to cut the visitors' lead to seven with just under five minutes to go. Gee particularly came on late with 12 second-half points and the junior was every bit as good on the defensive end, totaling five steals over the full 40 minutes. He also shot 50-percent from three-point range. In Gee and Andrews, Caltech currently boasts the SCIAC's leading scorer and assist getter in the face of a schedule that has challenged this year's team both physically and mentally.

"We put together a schedule to prepare us for our league," Eslinger said. "We've shown we can hang with teams across the nation that can compete for league championships and dominate the regional rankings."

Eslinger and the Beavers will return to action after Christmas to meet Tufts University at home on Sunday, Dec. 29 at 4:30 p.m.

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