CLAREMONT, Calif. – The University of Redlands Men's Basketball team (6-2, 2-1 SCIAC) held on to beat Pomona-Pitzer 73-71 on the road for their first win over the Sagehens since January 2023.  They have also won four of their last five.  

Five minutes into the opening half the Bulldogs held an 11-6 lead following a three by Donovan Ware (Palmdale, CA) and a Chozen Amadi (Dallas, TX) layup.

Eight minutes later Pomona-Pitzer converted on a three that capped off a 26-3 run for the Sagehens putting Redlands behind by 18, 32-14.

The Bulldogs, though, used the final seven minutes to cut the deficit to only five, 42-37, highlighted by a three-pointer from Amadi and a fastbreak layup for Jake Hlywiak (Valencia, CA) to end the half. During those seven minutes Hlywiak led the way with eight points, and Thomas Hastings (Chandler, AZ) and Jhace Boston (Bakersfield, CA) both added four points.

The first four points of the second half came from the Sagehens as it took three minutes for the Bulldogs to get their first bucket when Amadi found Omari Ferguson (Chicago, Ill.) in the paint for the finish.  

At the 14:39 mark Boston then blocked a shot and found Amadi out on a fastbreak where he made a jumper in the paint to give the Bulldogs their first lead since the first seven minutes of the first half.

Despite the strong opening eight minutes, the Sagehens responded with a 10-4 run going up two possessions, 61-56, with 6:17 left to play.

Moments after the Pomona-Pitzer basket that made it a five-point lead for the Sagehens, Ferguson came down and converted on an and-one to pull Redlands within two.

The final lead change of the game came with 3:08 on the clock when Ferguson picked up a steal feeding Ware for a 66-65 advantage. From that point forward the Bulldogs stayed in front and pulled out the win thanks to a 3-for-4 mark at the free throw line in comparison to the 1-3 mark for the Sagehens.

Amadi finished with a team-high 22 points, while Ferguson (13) and Hlywiak (11) also reached double figures.

As a team Redlands shot 44.4% from the field in the first half and 43.9% in the second half, but their defense went from allowing a 60.7% mark in the first to a 36.3% clip in the second.  

The Bulldogs wrap up their 2024 home schedule on Wednesday, December 18 at 3:00 p.m. when they host UC Santa Cruz inside Currier Gym.