LA VERNE, Calif. (Jan. 25, 2023) – Caltech Men's Basketball hit the road Wednesday night to seek revenge against the University of La Verne Leopards after dropping a close one in overtime when the teams last met.

But apart from the competitiveness to be expected when these two programs face off, there was also a display of unity as both teams' coaching staffs wore basketball shoes with their suits in observance of Suits and Sneakers Week, an annual initiative of the American Cancer Society's Coaches vs. Cancer campaign. 

While Caltech won the tip-off, La Verne scored first, quickly going up 4-0 in the first few minutes and drawing a quick timeout from Head Coach Dr. Oliver Eslinger to get things settled down and re-focused. The Beavers then fought back as Chase Pagon dropped in a couple layups before Pavlos Stavrinides drew a couple fouls and tied the game at 7-7 and again at 9-9 on free throws. James Downs answered La Verne's next two points with a layup of his own, and then Pagon dished to Noah Hicks for a go-ahead three-pointer to earn a 14-11 lead. Caltech then raced ahead with another Hicks triple followed by a three-ball by Kyle McGraw and a Ben Juarez layup, extending their lead to eight points at the 8:24 mark. 

The three-pointers kept coming for Caltech as Jack Pierson came off the bench to sink a couple threes bookending one by Pagon, which he assisted, and the Beavers led by a 34-21 margin with four and a half minutes to go in the half. Evan Portnoi jumped in on the scoring action with a Stavrinides-assisted layup, and finally McGraw scored once more from long range to put the exclamation point on the Beavers' opening frame. Caltech led 41-30 at halftime.

"We shot very well in the first half," Eslinger said. "We limited our turnovers and we made free throws, and we hit seven three-pointers in the first. Everyone was contributing, and when we dealt with some foul trouble later on, the other guys stepped up. Our focus was pretty good, and we just kept having answers and sticking together"

The Leopards did storm back into the game early in the second half, quickly cutting their deficit down to just four points a few minutes in, but Pagon responded with a layup and a three. Hicks and McGraw each knocked down threes in response to a couple La Verne baskets, and Caltech was back on top by 12. The hosts kept chipping away at the Beavers' advantage, pulling within three points in the last couple minutes before having to resort to fouling the Beavers to get the ball back after free throws. Caltech capitalized on the desperate strategy, hitting five free throws in the last 46 seconds of the contest to seal the victory.

Pagon led both teams in baskets and boards, racking up a 20-point, 12-rebound double-double along with three assists. Hicks and McGraw each tallied 13 points and a steal, with Hicks dishing a trio of assists and McGraw adding an assist and a blocked shot on defense. Stavrinides scored 11 points and grabbed nine rebounds, including a team-high five on offense.

The Beavers will face the Claremont-Mudd-Scrips Stags on the road this Saturday at 4 p.m. Watch live on the SCIAC Network.