Box Score On the opening night of the 65th Annual Lee Fulmer Memorial Classic, the University of Redlands men's basketball team defeated the Banana Slugs of UC Santa Cruz, 62-51. Redlands' great defensive effort all night long proved to be crucial, as the Bulldogs outscored UCSC in the second half by 20 points.
In an early defensive battle, Redlands took the initiative offensively, and after seven-straight points from junior forward Alex Rudd (St. Louis, MO), the Bulldogs led 12-6 with 11:08 left in the first frame.
The Banana Slugs responded with an offensive spurt of their own, however, outscoring the Bulldogs by a 12-5 margin over the next three minutes to take an 18-17 lead. UCSC continued to ride the momentum through halftime, holding Redlands to just 12 more points before the break en route to a 38-29 advantage.
Knowing it would take a strong defensive performance and a much better offensive showing in the second half, the Maroon and Gray went on an 11-1 run to begin the second stanza. Senior guard Brian Kuklok (Poway, CA) led the charge, scoring the first five points of that offensive outburst.
After UCSC retook the lead at 44-40, Redlands answered by firing off six consecutive points. During this stretch, junior guard Matt Calhoun (Clackamas, OR) sank a free throw, Rudd converted a layup and Kuklok sank a three-pointer in less than one minute of game-time.
The Banana Slugs once again fought back to make it a 48-46 ball game with 8:53 remaining in regulation. But after a couple of made free throws for Redlands, junior guard Eric Radford (Federal Way, WA) drained a critical shot from downtown, giving the Bulldogs a lead that it would not relinquish.
Unselfish play down the stretch led to some easy buckets for Redlands as it pulled away for the 11-point victory.
Stifling Bulldog defense all over the court led to eight UCSC turnovers in the second half and 14 times during the game. More impressively, the Bulldogs held the Banana Slugs to a 4-for-26 effort from the field during the second half to go along with a mere 9.1% from three-point range.
Senior forward Josiah Brensdal (Kent, WA) was all over the court for the Maroon and Gray, racking up 17 points on 8-for-14 shooting while also grabbing seven boards, dishing out three assists, notching one steal and tallying two blocks. Kuklok was the only other starter to hit double digits as he finished with 16 points and six boards.
Additionally, Rudd tallied nine points and four boards, as Calhoun chipped in seven total points on the night.
Furthermore, Redlands shot well from the line, converting 11-of-14 shots from the charity stripe.
James Townsend led UCSC offensively, scoring 18 points in the contest.
Redlands (5-2) faces Pacifica University (0-9) on Saturday at 7 p.m. in the conclusion of the 65th Annual Lee Fulmer Memorial Classic. That game will be preceded by UCSC taking on Arizona Christian University (3-1) at 5 p.m.in Currier Gym.
Pacifica vs. Future College Prep:
While never trailing in a unique match-up of first-time foes, Future College Prep stunned the Gladiators of Pacifica University by a score of 96-74 during Friday's opening game of the 65th Annual Lee Fulmer Memorial Classic. After a tight 10 minutes that resulted in a 23-all tie, Future College Prep fired off a 13-2 run and never looked back en route to its 12th win of the young season.
Midway through the first period, Pacifica evened the count at 23 with a three-pointer by Anthony Mangano.
However, the momentum quickly shifted to the Future with an impressive offensive outburst that spurred a double-digit lead at 36-23 with less than five minutes remaining in the first stanza. During this stretch, Future College Prep gained baskets from four different players, with Matthew Taylor and Warren Sledge each scoring four points.
By the end of the period, the Future owned a 17-point advantage at 50-33.
Late in the second frame, the Gladiators rallied to cut the lead to 13 points when Ronald Coleman drained a three-pointer at the six-minute-mark.
But Future College Prep refused to allow its opponents to move any closer and eventually made it a 96-74 final.
Four Future College Prep players contributed double-digit scoring, with Michael Dow leading his team with 17 points, which came off of 7-for-11 shooting. He also pulled in 11 rebounds for a double-double performance.
Frank Bartley came up with 14 points and eight assists, while Taylor added 13 points and nine boards.
For the Gladiators, Adam Tolbert paced all players with 19 points to go along with a team-high 10 rebounds. Dion Hudson chipped in 16 and Jaden Radcliffe provided 10 points.
Future College Prep owned the rebounding battle with a 58-39 advantage. In addition, the Future converted 42.4% of its shots, compared to Pacifica's 37.5% effort.
