The University of Redlands men's basketball team nabbed an exciting 71-70 victory over Occidental College in tonight's Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) game in Currier Gym.

Despite relinquishing an early 10-point lead, the Bulldogs rallied from four points down with 2:13 remaining to surge past the Tigers in the waning seconds. Junior guard Justin Sobczyk (Palm Desert, CA) hit a long jumper with nine seconds remaining to give Redlands the lead for the first time since 16:20 to go in the second half.

After a timeout, the Bulldogs utilized their foul to give on Occidental's ensuing possession, forcing the opponent's offense to reset just past midcourt with two seconds left on the clock.

The Tigers chucked up a desperation three-pointer that missed at the buzzer, resulting in pandemonium on Gary Smith Court as the raucous fans charged the floor in celebration.

Redlands looked to 11 different scorers in tonight's victory with senior guard Pat Coffey (San Carlos, CA) leading the team with 14 points. Junior forward Matt Dietrich (Phoenix, AZ) chipped in 11 points, going 5-for-10 from the field, while senior forward Bryan Schwartz (Las Vegas, NV) offered a perfect shooting performance with 10 points on a 4-for-4 showing.

Occidental gained a game-leading 24 points from sophomore forward Jack Hanley (Seattle, WA). Freshman forward Deshun McCoy (Los Angeles, CA) backed him with 19 points and nine boards. Senior guard Huston Conti (Seattle, WA) added 15 points, five assists, and five steals, while senior forward Sean Anderson (Burbank, CA) came up with 12 points and eight rebounds.

Overall, Redlands shot 48.4% from the field and scored 15 points off Occidental turnovers.

Occidental lit up the scoreboard in the second half with its 69.6% performance, including a 5-for-6 explosion from beyond the arc.

The Bulldogs (9-8, 5-1 SCIAC) now sit in a three-way tie for first place in the conference standings, as Pomona-Pitzer Colleges took down previously undefeated Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges earlier tonight.

Redlands looks forward to hosting the University of La Verne in Saturday's doubleheader. The women tip off at 5 p.m., followed by the men's game at 7:30 p.m. in Currier Gym. Saturday also marks “Fan Appreciation Night”, which includes a free Bulldog Basketball T-shirt for the first 125 fans at each game.