Men’s basketball stays perfect with big win over Whitman

ORANGE, Calif. – A tremendous night on both ends of the floor led the Chapman University men's basketball team to a 93-65 win over visiting Whitman on Tuesday. The Panthers (3-0) used a huge run in the first half to push away the Blues (1-2).

With nine minutes to go in the first half, Chapman led Whitman 21-19. Over the next five-plus minutes, the Panthers went on a 20-0 run to push the lead to 41-19. Whitman was never able to climb back in the game as Chapman sunk 12 three-pointers and shot 60 percent for the night.

Ben Grant had a perfect shooting night as he flew by defenders all the way to the rim on multiple occasions to go 5-for-5 from the floor and 2-for-2 from the line. He finished the game with 12 points and was one of three bench players to score in double figures. Anthony Giomi had 15 points in 20 minutes off the bench and Jacob Mata scored 10 points in 12 minutes.

Chandler White also had a perfect shooting night in his return to the floor. He played just nine minutes but scored eight points on 3-of-3 shooting with a pair of three-pointers.

Hayden Moore equaled Giomi for the team-high with 15 points. Jack Roggin and Anthony Smith each had 10 points. Smith had eight rebounds and four assists to go along with two blocks while Roggin had three rebounds, three assists and four steals.

On the strength of the 20-0 run, which ended with a three-pointer from Nikola Trifunovic, the Panthers built a 49-26 lead by halftime. Chapman kept on attacking and pushed the lead to as much as 38 points at the midway point in the second half when Daniel Foldes dropped in a layup with 9:40 to go to make 74-36.

While the shots fell all night for the Panthers, the defense smothered the Whitman offense, holding the Blues to 39 percent shooting on the night. Chapman also had 13 steals in forcing 15 turnovers from Whitman.

The Panthers take a perfect record into the Thanksgiving holiday but will have to face their last two opponents again as they head up to Santa Cruz, Calif. to take on UC Santa Cruz on Friday and Whitman on Saturday. They return home on Dec. 1 for their first SCIAC game against Pomona-Pitzer at 7 p.m.

By Steven Olveda
Sports Information Director

Become a fan of Chapman Athletics on Facebook
Follow Chapman Athletics on Twitter @ChapmanSports
Post your #PantherPic to Instagram @ChpmanSports