NEW YORK, NY (Nov. 20,2023)- The Poets continued their New York trip Monday afternoon taking on The City College of New York. Whittier, led by Roy Kalu (Boston, MA, Roxbury CC), made a strong push in the second half, but the Beavers were able to hold on to secure a 83-71 victory. 

In the first half the Poets and Beavers went back and forth with each other through the first 13 minutes. Tied at 21, Aamari Smith (Decatur, GA, San Bernardino Valley) was off to another great start as he put up an early 7 points. Unfortunately, New York was able to end the first half on a 23-12 run and were leading Whittier 44-33. 

The second half was much better for the Poets, as they were able to put more points on the board while also sharpening their defense. Kalu was the motor for Whittier during this second half as he was able to score 13 points of his own. However, Kalu and the Poets were not able to pull it all together and would lose this game by a final score of 83-71. 

A bright spot for Coach Mark Jensen and the Poets was their bench unit, who dominated this game. The second team outscored the Beavers 42-7. Kalu was in his bag during this game finishing with 16 points in only 18 minutes. Ignacio Bettinelli (San Jose, CA, West Valley CC) played great too for Whittier, contributing 11 points and 2 steals in 16 minutes. The Purple and Gold will play their final New York game tomorrow, taking on Sarah Lawrence College at 3:30. 

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