Photo by: Tony Leon/ActionWestPhotography.com

CLAREMONT, Calif. – The Whittier College Men's Basketball team opened up 2020 with a tough loss Saturday night against the Stags of Claremont-M-S 76-67. 

The Poets see their winning streak snapped at two games as they drop to 7-5, 2-1 SCIAC.  Claremont-M-S has now won six in a row and improve to 9-2, 1-1 SCIAC.

Whittier tied things up at 13-13 with a triple from Jude Agbasi (Los Angeles, Calif.) and then went on top for the first time as Journey Shank (Burbank, Calif.) would finish at the rim.  Rion Black-Hogins (Cupertino, calif.) then connected a minute later from deep that moved the score to 18-15 and then came down on the Poets next possession to convert a lay-in that moved the score to 20-15.   Black-Hogins would come up clutch midway through the half with another lay-up and a pair of free throws giving WC a 24-21 lead. 

Ahmad Young (Sunnyvale, Calif.) then got into the mix with a three-pointer that pushed the deficit to four, but from there the game went back and forth, until the 3:11 mark when CMS took an advantage putting together 13 unanswered giving them a 47-34 lead at the break.

Out of the break the Poet came out firing making three consecutive baskets, which included back-to-back layups from Shank.  This cut the Stag lead to nine at 49-40.  Nick Potthoff (Phoenix, AZ), who was coming in averaging 17.0 PPG, hit two free throws after being held to just five points in the first half, which cut the deficit to six.  Whittier started the half off on a 9-2 run, but still saw themselves trailing by eight.  The Stags and Poets then traded three-point baskets, as Potthoff would deliver from deep.  He was then followed by Kenyatta Louder (Compton, Calif.) who also knocked down a triple that moved the score to 54-49 with 12:03 left.  Potthoff continued the hot hand with a three-point basket that made it a two-point deficit at 54-52, but CMS would respond with an 8-2 run that stretched the margin back to six. 

Agbasi ended the run with a jumper that kept the Poets within striking distance at 61-57, but that's as close as WC would get despite Potthoff cutting the deficitto three following two free-throws with 1:29 to play. 

Potthoff finished the game with 17 points to go with six rebounds.  Young picked up 12 points on 4-of-7 shooting to go along with five boards and Shank put up eight points, four rebounds, four assists, and three steals.  Black-Hogins had his best game of the season coming off the bench with nine points, while Agbasi totaled seven points and four rebounds.              

Whittier shot 42.3% from the field and 40.0% from three-point territory.  They were outrebounded 38-37 and turned the ball over 18 times, which led to 19 points for the Stags.    

Whittier gets back to the court this Wednesday, January 8 when they remain on the road traveling out to Pasadena, Calif. to take on Caltech beginning at 7:00pm.