SALEM, Ore. – Six different Bearcats players scored in double figures led by Josiah Frank with 22 points, as Willamette University's men's basketball team completed its first perfect week in Northwest Conference play with a 111-104 victory over the visiting Bruins of George Fox University Saturday afternoon inside Cone Field House.
With today's win, Willamette improves to 8-10 overall and 2-8 in Northwest Conference play. The Bearcats picked up victories over Lewis & Clark on Tuesday and eclipsed the 100-point mark for the fourth time this season and first in NWC games. This is the first conference game in which Willamette score 100-or-more points since January 7, 2022 in a 103-86 win over Puget Sound. On the other hand, George Fox falls to 8-11 overall and 4-6 in NWC matchups.
Along with Frank, five other Bearcats – Ryder Hsiung, D'Ante Dean, Kahiau Bruhn, Kai Brown, and Anujan Tennathur – scored in double figures with 20, 16, 16, 13, and 13 points, respectively. Dean tallied a double-double with a game-high 15 rebounds paired with a team-high tying five assists. Tennathur also handed out five assists to tie Dean for the team lead, while Brown grabbed nine rebounds for the victorious Bearcats.
The first half started as a back-and-forth battle over the opening five minutes, as the game was tied at 12-12 before Willamette used a mini one-minute 4-0 run to pull ahead 16-12 on a Hsiung fast break lay-in. The Bearcats would continue to hold the lead pushing to as much as six points (27-21) on a pair of free throws by Frank with 9:39 on the clock. George Fox would answer with six unanswered points to tie the game at 27-all on a old-fashion three-point play by Nick Greenwood with 8:45 showing on the game clock. Over the final eight-plus minutes of the first half, neither team could muster more than a nine-point lead as Willamette grabbed a 55-46 lead on a pair of free throws by Caleb Moore with eight seconds left. GFU's Cory Schramm would conclude the scoring in the first 20 minutes on a fast break dunk for the halftime difference of seven points (55-48).
George Fox started the second half on a 7-2 run to pull the visiting Bruins within two points (57-55) before Willamette scored nine of the next 11 points to pull in front by eight points (66-58) on a free throw by Bruhn with 15:40 on the clock. Over the next six-plus minutes, the host Bearcats slowly increased their lead to double digits (85-75) on a Bruhn tip-in with 9:21 left in the game. Willamette secured its largest lead of the game at 93-81 on a Moore lay-in with just under seven minutes on the clock. Using a never-say-quit attitude, George Fox used a 22-12 run over a span of six minutes to get within two points (105-103) before key defensive stands and free throw shooting down the stretch by Willamette, including a 6-for-8 performance at the free throw line in the game's final minute, to secure its second straight NWC win of the season.
George Fox was led offensively by Momo Stokes with a game-high 38 points on a combined 11-for-22 shooting from the field, including 5-for-6 from beyond the three-point line and 11-of-15 at the free throw line. The Bruins were supported offensively by a pair of GFU players – Greenwood and Jake Bishop – in double figures with 15 and 12 points respectively. On the boards, Stokes also pulled down a team-leading nine rebounds to go along with a game-high six assists by Chris Nickelberry.
As a team, Willamette combined to shoot 33-for-65 (50.8%) from the field that included a 52.9% (18-for-34) performance in the second half. The Bearcats were also 9-for-23 (39.1%) from behind the three-point line and 36-for-43 (83.7%) at the free throw line. On the other hand, George Fox was a combined 34-for-76 (44.7%) from the field, 12-for-26 (46.2%) from long distance, and 24-for-31 (77.4%) at the charity stripe.
Willamette returns to the hardwood on Friday, February 7, when the Bearcats host Whitman College beginning at 6:00 PM inside Cone Field House.
