ROCKLIN, Calif. - On a day where Jessup honored one of their fallen teammates, the Warriors (4-0) then honored Kevin McLemore with a huge win on the final day of the Bill Holtz Classic beating Northwest Christian 80-77 Saturday night.
Warriors coach Lance Von Vogt said the occasion made the win even more special as many of the current players played with filled hearts. "I'm really proud of the guys tonight and how they persevered. This being the anniversary of when K-Mac (McLemore) passed away I feel like it was a struggle for us to focus on basketball all night long. I'm just glad that we somehow figured it out and got the win."
The game began with Jessup clicking on all cylinders as they took a 14-0 lead thanks to some dominating play from freshmen center Sam Howlin. The La Habra, Calif. native made an immediate impact in just his third college game as he had 10 points, two blocks, and three rebounds in the opening five minutes.
However, the Beacons settled down at the 15-minute mark and went on an 8-0 run to bring the score to 14-8.
Later in the half, Northwest Christian continued to chip away at the Warrior's lead as they went on another 8-0 run to tie the game at 26 all with 6:25 left. NCU took their first lead of the game a minute later on a 3-pointer giving them a 29-27 advantage.
In the half's final six minutes neither team took a lead of more than four as Jessup led 37-35 heading into halftime.Â
While the Warriors had the hot hand behind the arc a day ago, the team was 0-7 from deep in the first half but used some strong inside play to find scoring opportunities.Â
In the second half, both teams traded short bursts of success as Luis Medearis got going offensively for the Warriors with a jumper at the 16:28 mark and then again at the 12:51 mark as he cut the Beacons led to one.Â
Then Isaiah Milan took over for the Warriors as he scored on a runner with 7:36 left and then extended Jessup's lead to four on a driving layup with 4:30 left.Â
Coming down the stretch the Beacons had a two-point lead when Medearis answered with a pull wing three giving the Warriors a 76-75 lead with 35 seconds to go that proved to be enough to take home the win.Â
The Warriors made four consecutive free throws in the final seconds to close out the three-point victory and advantage their win streak to three games.
Jessup was led by the trio of Howlin, Medearis, and Milan as they combined for 59 points as Howling earned his first double-double of the season with 19 points and 11 rebounds.Â
Von Vogt said while his team will gladly take home their fourth consecutive victory, they'll need to play better in the future to win on the road. "NCU tested us for 40 minutes and we were fortunate to pull it out. We will have to play better up at their place in a couple of weeks if we expect to win."Â
The Warriors will rematch the Beacons Nov. 22 in Eugene, Ore. but up next Jessup will make a short trip to play UC Davis Thursday at 7 p.m.
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William Jessup University is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), and the Golden State Athletic Conference (GSAC). For additional information regarding Jessup Athletics, visit www.jessupathletics.com; visit www.jessup.edu for more information on William Jessup University. Follow Jessup Athletics on social media: William Jessup University Athletics (Facebook) and @JessupAthletics (Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat).
