FOREST GROVE, Ore. – The Elmhurst men's basketball team upped its record to 7-3 on the season after kicking off its two-game road trip to Oregon with a 96-93 win over Pacific.
The first half was a back-and-forth affair with the lead changing hands 11 times. Pacific built an early nine-point lead midway through the half, but Elmhurst rallied with a 12-3 run over 3:30 to pull even at 33-33. Trailing by four with three minutes left in the half, the Bluejays closed with a 7-2 run to take a 45-44 lead at the half.
Pacific (8-3) built a seven-point cushion early in the second half, but Elmhurst answered back with an 8-0 run to surge back in front. The score was tied at 89-89 with one minute left, but the Bluejays went up for good on a three-point play from
Jeremy Ireland. Two Pacific free throws cut Elmhurst's lead down to one, but a pair of
Derek Dotlich free throws put the Bluejays back up by three with 17 seconds left. Pacific used two free throws with four seconds left to close to within a point for a second time, but
Jake Rhode hit two free throws to put the game away for Elmhurst.
The Bluejays shot 47.9 percent (35-of-73) from the floor, including 39.1 percent (9-of-23) from downtown. The Bluejays won the battle on the glass, outrebounding Pacific 39-28. Elmhurst also outscored Pacific 50-38 in the paint. The Bluejays turned 16 offensive rebounds into 20 second-chance points.
All five Elmhurst starters reached double figures in scoring.
Jeremy Ireland led the way with a double-double of 21 points and 10 rebounds.
Ryan Patton added 20 points, knocking down 6-of-11 shots, including 4-of-7 from long distance.
Lavon Thomas added 19 points and seven rebounds while Rhode finished with 18 points. Dotlich finished with 12 points for the Bluejays.
Pacific shot 54.2 percent (32-of-59) from the floor, including 40.0 percent (6-of-15) from the floor. The Boxers were a perfect 23-of-23 from the foul line. Nate Olowo led Pacific with 27 points and nine rebounds while Brevin Brown came off the bench to score 20.
Elmhurst wraps up its two-game road trip by playing at Willamette University tomorrow (December 30).
