FULLERTON, Calif.  -- After the women opened up Golden State Athletic Conference play with a victory, Vanguard men's basketball did the same against Hope International on Thursday night.  The Lions were ahead by only two points at the break but put on an inspired performance in the second half to waltz away to a 79-64 victory.  Balanced scoring and a stalwart effort on defense were too much for the Royals to handle, as HIU mustered only a 26.9% shooting rate in the second half, 18.8% from three-point land.   With five Lions in double figures, VU opens the GSAC season at 1-0, improving to 11-3 overall.  HIU falls to 10-4 overall and 0-1 to start GSAC play.      
 
 
What Happened? The Blue and Gold controlled the tip and after a few passes, Jackson Larsen kicked the ball out to Preston Sims, who sunk the opening triple of the contest.  Larsen then made one of two free throws the next time down the court to put VU ahead 4-0 with just over a minute gone.  The lead grew to five off a downtown shot from Bryson Metz, but Hope was certainly not out of the fight.  The Royals would trim the lead down to one point three times over the next four minutes, but the Lions would still find a way to keep one step ahead of their local rival. 
 
A three for Cam'Ron Wilson and a layup for Mitchell Prevost would counter the Hope push and put the Lions up 18-12 with 13:30 to go in the first half.  Even after an 8-0 run by the hosts gave the Royals their first lead of the ball game, threes from Metz and Phillip Willis would vault VU back into the lead 24-20.  HIU would respond over the next few minutes and another 6-0 stretch helped HIU to level the score at 29-29 with 3:47 to go.  The game would be tied three more times over the final four minutes of the opening frame, but Willis would put Vanguard ahead 36 seconds before the intermission.  A nice sequence saw the senior get open from behind the arc and drilled the three to put VU ahead 37-35.
 
The squad shot 40% from the field in the opening period and 35% from downtown.  The Royals were a bit better from the field at 44.8% but a little worse than VU from beyond the arc at 33.3%.
 
The three by Willis proved to be the winning shot in a way, as the Lions thrashed their way to a double-digit lead over the opening three minutes of the second frame and Hope was rarely within 10 points of VU the rest of the game.  Sims again commenced the barrage by draining a three 33 seconds into the new half and a layup by Larsen put the Vanguard edge at 42-35.  Nico Dasca would add in four points over a 90-second span to increase the gap to 49-37 with 16:50 to go, which forced the Royals to take a timeout.

Hope inched the gap down to eight buckets after that, but both Micah Swartz and Anthony Tello would drive home threes in response.  A mid-range jumper for Wilson would push the advantage to 57-41 with 12:10 left on the clock and Vanguard would not look back, as the Lions would walk out of Darling Pavillion with a 79-64 victory. 
 
Vanguard shot 45% from the floor for the match, 40% from deep, and went 13-for-19 from the charity stripe. HIU ended up at a 36.4% rate from the field in the game and 22.7% from deep.  Hope also had a slight edge in rebounds 36-32 but could not match the scoring pace of the Lions.
 
Vanguard had five players over 10 points, with Metz pacing the squad with 15 points, going 3-of-4 from deep and knocking down all six of his free throws.  Willis was second with 13 points and he also made three triples on the night.  Wilson had 12 points and both Larsen and Sims each netted 10.  Willis and Larsen led VU with five rebounds each and Larsen topped the lineup with four assists.

What was Said?  "I'm proud of the guys for really gearing it up for the start of GSAC," said Head Coach Rhett Soliday.  "If we had to pick one program that is historically known as incredibly tough and committed to what they do, it's Hope.  They are so well coached and difficult to beat.  So, to go on the road and bring the level of fight that we did was great to see, and I'm pleased with the defensive effort more than anything.  To also have five guys in double figures and 10 guys score overall in the game really speaks to our depth and that definitely was a factor for us tonight."
 
Why is it Important?  Vanguard beats Hope for the first time in two games and puts the all-time record at 58-23 in favor of the Blue and Gold.  The Master's and Arizona Christian also won on the opening day of GSAC play today.
 
What's Next?  The Lions will host TMU on Saturday at the OCC Gym at 7:30 p.m., the fifth time this season that the Lions have taken on a top 25 team in the NAIA.