Box Score LAS VEGAS (Dec. 28, 2023) – Junior guard
Aamari Smith (Decatur, Ga. / San Bernardino Valley) and the Whittier College men's basketball team put together an even performance, but ultimately came up short to Rhodes College on the first day of the D3Hoops.com Invitational, hosted at the South Point Arena miles away from the Las Vegas Strip.
Friday's game was not a tale of two halves. Rather, the Poets and Lynx traded blows almost equally for the majority of one of the day's most competitive games. However, the two teams did have their moments individually. After the Lynx made an effort to distance themselves early in the second half, the Poets began to chip away, and almost completely eliminated Rhodes' game-high 14-point lead. At just under the 13-minute mark, Smith fed classmate
Jake Estep (Portland, Ore. / Umpqua CC) on an big three-pointer that cut the Whittier deficit to just two points. After the Lynx regained the upper hand, the Poets remained defiant, eventually tying the game with four and a half minutes remaining in regulation on a free throw from senior forward
Nick Manor-Hall (Chino Hills, Calif. / Chino Hills), capping off an 11-2 run.
From there, both teams engaged in a sprint to the finish line, and thanks to Estep's outside scoring and Smith's ability to make plays in transition, the Poets remained competitive with the Lynx until the final whistle. Smith ultimately turned in another performance on par with what Poet fans have come to expect of him, scoring 24 points on 50 percent shooting. He also made his presence felt defensively with a trio of steals to lead the Purple & Gold, and also stood out as the only Poet to play more than 30 minutes. Meanwhile, 10 Whittier players logged at least 10 minute of action, while nine of 11 players registered points.
The Poets received some important depth scoring from Manor-Hall, along with junior guard
Kunal Bagga (Anaheim, Calif. / Servite). Both players did most of their damage at the free throw line, with Manor-Hall converting on 6-of-8 free throws, while Bagga connected on all seven of his attempts. Smith, too, went 10-for-12 from the line to push the Poets to a 32-for-40 afternoon at the charity stripe. The 40 free throw attempts represent a new season-best total, meanwhile, Whittier has come within no greater than five points of victory in games where they attempt more than 25 free throws, bar the team's season-opener against the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Head Coach Mark Jensen and the Poets will return to the South Point Arena for another tough test when they take on Husson University at 8 p.m.
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