Kingsmen Give No. 3 Occidental a Scare

Tyler Brabant scored a career-high 15 points in the loss to Occidental.
Tyler Brabant scored a career-high 15 points in the loss to Occidental.

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — A half court heave at the buzzer from Kyle Ferreira was just off the mark and the Occidental Tigers escaped from Gilbert Arena with a 70-67 win on Saturday night. 

Ferreira was looking for his second buzzer beater of the year as he was trusted with the final shot. He made a game-winning half court shot against Whittier on Jan. 19.

The Kingsmen were looking to upset the No. 3 team in the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC). Cal Lutheran had the lead multiple times in the final minutes, but couldn't hold on as they fell to 6-14 overall and 4-7 in conference. The Tigers improved to 18-3 and 9-3.

Ferreira recorded his fifth double-double of the year as he led the Kingsmen with 20 points and 11 rebounds. Austin Cole was one rebound shy of a double-double as he added 16 points and nine boards. 

Tyler Brabant set his career-high in points as he put up 15. He was perfect from three-point range and made all three of his attempts. He made his presence known on the offensive glass and pulled down four of his seven rebounds. 

Jared Wulbrun and Palmer Chaplin did a little bit of everything for the Kingsmen. Wulbrun scored eight points, pulled down four rebounds, dished out two assists and had one steal while Chaplin came off the bench and tallied four points, four rebounds and a team-high three assists. 

The Tigers had an impressive shooting night and were 46.7-percent from the field and 50-percent from three-point range. Oxy took a quick 9-0 lead and kept that margin for the first 10 minutes of the half. CLU slowly cut into the lead and the Kingsmen were only down 26-25 after a Ferreira three-pointer. Oxy increased its lead just before the half and went into the locker room up 36-29. 

In the second half, there were four ties and two lead changes. The first tie came with three minutes left in the game as Chaplin made his first free throw. He then made his second free throw to put the Kingsmen up for the first time with a score of 64-63. The teams went back-and-forth over the next few minutes. With the score tied at 67, Oxy's Jacob Alder drained a three with four seconds left. Ferreira couldn't answer as the Kingsmen came up short. 

Cal Lutheran looks to keep their playoff hopes alive on Wednesday. The Kingsmen host La Verne at 7 p.m. in Gilbert Arena. 

Box Score: OXY 70, CLU 67
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Release by Ryan Jorgenson, Sports Information Director

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