THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — Cal Lutheran men's basketball ended the game on a 16-2 run and the Kingsmen opened conference play with a 78-69 win over La Verne on Wednesday night.
It was first Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) game for both teams and La Verne was up 67-62 before Cal Lutheran made its move.
Interview with Devon Lewis and Tommy Griffitts
Devon Lewis answered the call and scored 11 of the 16 points as he put the game on ice for the Kingsmen. He was fouled on two of his made shots and converted both of the three-point plays. He lead his team with 24 points and added four each of rebounds, assists and steals.
Tommy Griffitts made a layup during the run and Desi Burrage drained a three-pointer. Griffitts scored the second most points for the Kingsmen with 14 and added a team high six rebounds. Burrage had eight points and added three steals.
Ze'ev Remer came off the bench to score 12 points and grabbed three rebounds. Brock Susko matched Griffitts with a team high six rebounds.
The game had eight ties and nine lead changes before Cal Lutheran put it out of reach. The Leopards had the better shooting day going 55.6-percent from the field and 50 from three-point range. The Kingsmen were 44.2-percent from the field and 33.3 from three.
The biggest difference in the game was turnovers and points off turnovers. Cal Lutheran forced La Verne into 27 turnovers while only committing 17. The Kingsmen scored 29 points off the turnovers while the Leopards could only score 16.
Cal Lutheran also had the answer for points in the point and fast break points. The Kingsmen recorded 32 in the paint and 20 off fast break. La Verne had 24 and seven.
It was a tale of two halves as the scoring came in bunches in the first with the Leopards going up 48-44. Cal Lutheran flipped the script in the second, outscoring La Verne 34-21 in the second, and took the game.
The Kingsmen look to start a winning streak on Saturday. Cal Lutheran is at Chapman with tipoff set for 4 p.m.
Box Score: CLU 78, ULV 69
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