Photo by: Tony Leon/ActionWestPhotography.com

WHITTIER, Calif. - The Whittier College men's basketball team outscored La Verne 44-43 in the second half but couldn't overcome a nine-point halftime deficit as the Leopards were able to even the season series with the purple and gold on Wednesday evening.

Despite a strong second half shooting that saw the Poets sink 18-of-33 shots (54.5 percent) the Leopards held on for the 79-71 win.

David Hayashi and DaMon Perry each reached double figures for the Poets but Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference leading point man, Drew Menez, was held to just nine points on 2-of-9 shooting.

Hayashi poured in a team-high 17 points and Perry chipped in with 14 points and seven boards.

Willie Mebane continued his strong play off the bench with four points, eight rebounds, three assists, a block and a steal.

The Poets shot 49 percent from the field for the game but were just 2-of-10 from three-point range. Whittier held La Verne to a 38 percent effort shooting in the first half but allowed the Leopards to hit 7-of-21 three-pointers.

The Poets return to action this weekend, at 7:30 pm, as they travel to Redlands to face the Bulldogs.