EL CAJON, Calif. – With two games left in the regular season, Vanguard men's basketball traveled to take on San Diego Christian Thursday night. The Lions encountered a feisty Hawks team that did not let VU escape to any large lead for most of the contest. But despite the home side's best effort, the Lions were able to convert some free throws and hit some key shots in the paint over the final four minutes to net a 71-66 win. Vanguard improves to 13-12 overall and 7-10 in Golden State Athletic Conference play, while SDCC falls to 6-12 overall and 5-12 in GSAC action.
What Happened? Both teams shot at about the same rate, as each side was roughly 41% from the floor and 81% from the charity stripe for the game. The Hawks made one extra three but the Lions had five more chances from the free throw line and four more conversions than the hosts. VU also forced three extra turnovers to help flip the scoreboard in favor of the Blue and Gold, winning the turnover battle 13-16. Four Lions reached double-digits on the night, with Phillip Willis (SR/San Diego, CA) leading the team with 16 points, with the senior also going 3-for-6 from downtown. Garrett White (SR/Post Falls, ID) was next with 14 points and Isaac Davis (SR/Valencia, CA) and Bryson Metz (FR/Vancouver, WA) each had 10, with Davis pacing the team with eight assists. Jacob Brown (JR/El Dorado Hills, CA) had a fine night on the glass as he secured five offensive rebounds and two defensive boards to lead the squad with seven total rebounds.
White opened the scoring on the night with a three just 20 seconds in but the Hawks replied with a downtown shot of their own. The game would be tied at the 15-minute mark before Willis splashed down with a triple to give VU an 11-8 lead. Vanguard would keep that three-point gap for the next six minutes, but back-to-back layups for SDCC put the hosts ahead 19-17 with eight minutes left in the period.
The Hawks added four more points to their run to claim a 23-17 edge, but Willis then nailed a jumper and a three in the span of a minute to pull the Lions to within one at 23-22. A layup for Micah Swartz (FR/Newbury Park, CA) off a crafty feed from Davis gave the lead back to the Blue and Gold, but the Hawks would jump out in front two more times as the half wound down. Trailing 31-28 with a minute to go, Vanguard found a way to create some space and take some positive energy into the locker room. Metz netted a jumper with 36 seconds left and Willis buried another triple with three ticks remaining to push VU ahead 33-31 at the half, with the Lions closing out the frame on a 7-2 run.
San Diego Christian posted seven unanswered points to open the second half, forcing VU to take a timeout. Brown got the Lions on the board in the period with a layup with 17:45 to go and Metz converted an and-one to knot the game at 38-all a minute later. The game would be tied twice more over the next five minutes but things started to turn in favor of the Blue and Gold at the midway point of the second half.
A layup for Jackson Larsen (JR/El Cajon, CA) put VU up 49-47, as White picked up the helper. A pretty layup for Davis extended the lead to 54-51 with 7:02 left in the game and the Lions called a timeout to organize defensively. White would collect the next four points for VU, putting the Lions ahead 58-53, but SDCC would keep coming and once more close the gap to just a single point. Jadyn Johnson (JR/Temecula, CA) then pocketed two free throws with 2:55 to go and the Lions did not look back. Layups for Metz and Larsen pushed the lead to 64-58 and two free throws for Willis made it 66-60 with 1:14 left on the board.
The Hawks had one last push in them, as they rolled off four points in quick order to make it 67-64. However, both White and Metz went 2-for-2 from the free throw line to ice the game and give Vanguard the 71-66 win.
What was Said? "San Diego Christian has been playing as well as anyone in the conference of late and Greg Chew (game-high 18 points) is as good as anyone in the GSAC," said Head Coach Rhett Soliday. "He almost had a triple-double tonight. Coach Cosby has had them rolling, so to go to SDCC and get a win is a big deal for our team. It wasn't a pretty finish but to find a way to close out the contest was great. I was really proud of our resilience and togetherness. On to the next game and we are excited to have another shot at Hope to finish out GSAC play."
What's Next? Vanguard will have a 4:00 p.m. tip against the Royals on Saturday, February 18, in Fullerton.
