WHITTIER, Calif. - The
Whittier College men's basketball team made getting to the Southern
California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference playoffs a little
easier as they handily defeated SCIAC rival, Occidental College,
65-49 Saturday night at the Graham Athletic Center.
The win puts the Poets (14-8, 8-3 SCIAC) three games ahead of
fifth place Occidental with only three games remaining on the
schedule. Whittier's final three games are against the top three
teams in the conference in Pomona-Pitzer, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps
and Cal Lutheran.
The Tigers finish the season with the bottom three teams in the
conference, Caltech, La Verne and Redlands. One win by WC and
one loss by Occidental clinches the Poets' playoff ticket.
The win avenges an earlier season loss the Poets had to the
Tigers. Michael Archuletta scored a game-high 21
points on 8-of-12 shooting. The Manhattan Beach, Calif., native
finished the night 3-for-3 from behind the arc and sparked a Poet
run that gave them a double-digit lead midway through the first
half.
Archuletta tied the game at 15 with a jumper and gave WC its
first lead of the night on its next possession with a layup. On
Whittier's ensuing possession Archuletta made his first three ball
of the night to give the Poets a 20-15 advantage.
Jeff McLean hit a pair of free throws and
AJ Manalo added two of his four points before
Archuletta added to the run with the next five points.
McLean added the next four points before the Poets pushed its
lead to 36-15 after Archuletta made due on his third three pointer
of the half.
Occidental cut the lead to 14 points, 40-26, at the half.
The rivalry intensified in the second half but the Poets were
able to keep their cool and build on their lead. WC led by as many
as 24 points in the second frame en route to its 16-point win.
Keegan Hoover, David Hayashi
and McLean each added 10 points in the win. Hoover grabbed a
game-high eight rebounds.
The Poets return to action on Wednesday, February 18, as they
face first place Pomona-Pitzer at 7:30 p.m. in Claremont, Calif.
The Poets are only one game behind the Sagehens and are only one of
two teams to beat Pomona in conference play. WC won the first
meeting 91-84 on January 24.
Photo by: Tony Leon/Action West Photography
