Photo by Bob Palermini
PASADENA, Calif. (Dec. 19, 2015) – Senior Kc Emezie (Waxhaw, N.C. / Marvin Ridge) netted a season-high 22 points but the Caltech men's basketball team was unable to hold a 12-point first half lead, falling 75-59 to George Fox University on Saturday night.
Caltech sprinted out to a commanding 18-6 lead by the 14:45 mark behind eight points from junior Lawrence Lee (Hong Kong / Hong Kong International School) and a trio of three-pointers, with two coming from junior Ricky Galliani (Menlo Park, Calif. / Sacred Heart Prep). George Fox steadily climbed back into the game until Emezie scored on back-to-back layups and sophomore David Kawashima (Studio City, Calif. / North Hollywood) stripped the ball and scored on the fast break to make it a nine-point game. Emezie added another layup to keep it at nine with 5:40 on the clock, but the Bruins continued to fight back and came within four with 45 seconds left in the half. Freshman Brent Cahill (Laguna Beach, Calif. / Laguna Beach) knocked down a trey in the waning seconds to give the Beavers some breathing room at 34-27 heading into the break.
A quick Bruins three tightened that margin, but Emezie had plenty left in the tank, hitting Lee for a layup, drilling a three of his own and driving for another layup to regain the nine-point edge. After trading a handful of baskets, George Fox's Josh Caddel subbed in and turned the tables with a trio of three-pointers in less than two minutes to tie the game at 47-47 with 12:13 remaining. Cahill got to the line for Caltech and hit one of his two chances to regain the lead, but the Bruins would outscore the Beavers 28-11 down the stretch to steal the game.
Along with Emezie's 22 points, Lee scored 13 and grabbed a team-high eight rebounds. Five different Beavers dished out two assists with another three tallying one apiece.
Head Coach Dr. Oliver Eslinger and the Beavers will take a 10-day break from competition for the holidays before hosting the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse (4-5) on Tuesday, Dec. 29 at 7:30 p.m.
