WHITTIER, Calif. (Nov. 30, 2022)- The Poets opened up their conference play in a battle against the Redlands Bulldogs. The Bulldogs were able to top the Poets in the end by a score of 87-78. 

As the game began Whittier picked up right where they left off the last game, getting their shots to fall on the offensive end and recording four steals in the first nine minutes of the contest. Halfway through the first half the Poets had a 23-13 lead over the Bulldogs. As the half continued, the Poets maintained a five-point lead until the final three minutes of the half when the Bulldogs continued their comeback. As the buzzer for the half sounded, the Poets lead was cut to two points, 39-37.

Ethan Battistini continued his dominance from last game. In the first half he totaled 14 points, going 6-8 from the field. Jude Agbasi continued his great play on both sides of the court as he was 4-4 from the field and also led the game in steals. 

The second half began and Redlands came out ready to fight. They quickly took the lead away from the Poets and did want to stop. 7 minutes into the second half the Bulldogs had a double-digit lead with the score of 58-47. A combination of turnovers and shots not falling led to the Poets lead slipping away. The Bulldogs lead' got to as big as 14, but as the time ticked down, Whittier came within six points with three minutes left. Eventually, the Poets would run out of time and fall, 87-78. 

Battistini had a career game tonight. He scored almost half of Whittier's total points pouring in a career-high 36. He was also able to grab 8 rebounds in only 27 minutes off the bench. A lot of other Poets were able to contribute in the game tonight, including Bryant Howing who had 7 points, 8 assists, and 5 rebounds. But no one was able to pull Whittier ahead of the Bulldogs. 

The men's next game will be this Saturday December 3rd at 2:00, when they host UC Santa Cruz. This will be the men's chance to get back on track before playing CSUN on Sunday. 

Photo: Tony Leon/ActionWestPhotography.com

Follow and show support for your Whittier Poets on Twitter (@WCPoets), YouTube and Instagram (@PoetAthletics)!