Furious comeback falls just short vs. Westmont

VALLEJO, Calif. – Lee Jones Jr. led a trio of Keelhauler double-digit scorers in Saturday's non-conference game in Vallejo by finishing with 13 — a total that included nine points earned at the free throw line out of 10 attempts.

Lunden Taylor connected on all four of his attempts from the floor and ended his night with 12 points, and Miles Pennington chipped in another 10 in a game that saw Cal Maritime trim Westmont's game-high 15-point lead down to five — over a seven-minute block of action in the latter portion of the second half — with 20 seconds left to play.

By making their last eight shots at the line throughout the final 30 seconds of the game, the visiting Warriors withstood CSUM's late charge to escape PEAC Main Gym with a 79-73 victory.

With this result, Westmont remains undefeated at 5-0.

Fueling the Keelhaulers' comeback attempt was Jones Jr., who scored 10 of his 13 points throughout the second half. Taylor and Shawn Kelly provided additional scoring options for CSUM and kept the Warriors on their heels since the former scored seven points after halftime, with the latter earning all six of his points throughout his seven minutes of play in the second half.

Even through the result was not what the Keelhaulers wanted, its defense frustrated Westmont all night long and forced a potent offense to truly earn each of its points throughout the game.

Entering Saturday's game, the Warriors averaged 102.5 points per game and outscored their opponents 410-229. Not only were the Keelhaulers' 73 points the highest recorded by a Westmont opponent, its 79 points were 23.5 fewer below this season's average.  

Starting with Wednesday's 6 p.m. exhibition at UC Davis, a game it will enter with an 0-3 overall record, men's basketball next two games will take place on the road. Following Saturday's 2 p.m. meeting at Menlo, the Keelhaulers will host UC Santa Cruz next Wednesday and Southern Oregon on November 19 before wrapping up the month with another exhibition contest, at Holy Names, on November 22.