FRESNO, Calif. – Jessup men's basketball (8-8, 5-5 PacWest) showcased their resilience in a second half comeback to take down Fresno Pacific (7-10, 6-5 PacWest) at the Special Events Center, 86-81.
Facing a double-digit halftime deficit on the road,the Warriors exploded for 50 second-half points to secure an exhilarating comeback victory over the Sunbirds Tuesday night.
Trailing 46-36 at the break, Jessup completely flipped the script in the final 20 minutes. The Warriors' defense became the catalyst for the comeback, forcing Fresno Pacific into critical errors and turning those mistakes into points. Jessup finished the night with 15 steals and converted FPU's turnovers into 27 points.
Head Coach Mark Darnall commented on the big road victory for his team, "What a huge road win tonight, Fresno Pacific has been a really good home team this year and have been hot winning five of their last six games".
Tom Parsons was the focal point of the Jessup attack, putting up a monster performance. Parsons led all scorers with 24 points, falling just one rebound shy of a double-double with a team-high nine boards. He was aggressive at the rim all night, drawing contact and finishing 9-of-11 from the charity stripe.
Parsons was joined in double figures by four other Warriors in a balanced offensive effort. Andre Norris contributed 14 points and a team-high four steals, while Varick Lewis provided a spark from deep, knocking down three triples on his way to 13 points.
Darnall continued about the Warriors versatility and grit, "Having five guys in double figures just shows a balance that we have on this team's ability to score." He finished, The team showed great discipline tonight and I am really proud of our response being down 10 at half. Then coming out and choosing to fight and believe; this group is always capable of something special any night".
Off the bench, Wyatt Studer was highly efficient, scoring 12 points on 4-of-5 shooting, including a perfect 2-for-2 from beyond the arc. Cayden McDaniel added 11 points, fueled by a perfect 7-for-7 night at the free-throw line.
As a unit, Jessup's composure at the line was a deciding factor. The Warriors shot 80.6% (29-of-36) from the free-throw line, including a staggering 20-of-22 in the second half alone to salt the game away.
The Sunbirds were led by Seth Brown and Brandon Gibson Jr., who each scored 21 points, but the Jessup defense limited FPU to just 36% shooting from the field in the second half to seal the come-from-behind win.
The win moves the Warriors back to .500 on the season (8-8 overall) and evens their PacWest Conference record at 5-5.
With the victory, Jessup looks to build on this momentum as they return home to Warrior Arena. The Warriors will come back to Rocklin on Thursday, January 22nd to take on Menlo College. Tipoff will be at 7:30 PM for Lua Night.
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