Corban's Ben Sisler surpassed his previous career-high of 22 points that he set twice earlier this season against Bethany and William Jessup.
Career-High by Corban's Sisler not Enough in Loss to Knights
SALEM, Ore. -- Senior Ben Sisler (Corvallis, Ore.) scored a career-high 24 points off the bench on 7-for-11 shooting from the field, but it was not enough as Corban's men's basketball team fell, 93-80, to the NAIA's No. 29-ranked Knights of Warner Pacific Friday inside the C.E. Jeffers Sports Center.
The 6-foot-3 senior guard tallied 14 of his team-high 24 points in the first half, as the Santiam Christian High School graduate came off the bench and shot 5-for-7 from the field that included a 2-for-4 showing from beyond the arc in the opening twenty minutes.
In the opening half, Warner Pacific scored the game's first eight points before jumping out to an early 12-2 advantage a mere 3:10 into the game. The Warriors came back within a mere two points (14-12) thanks to a 10-2 run over a span of 2:46 spearheaded by seven points from Sisler. The visiting Knights increased their lead to seven points (19-12) following a jumper in the paint by Jalonta Martin with 11:22 on the clock. Another run by the Warriors pulled Corban within a mere point (23-22) following back-to-back jumpers by junior Wade Douglas (Ontario, Ore.) with 9:20 remaining in the first half. Corban took its first lead of the game when freshman Ian Logan (Aloha, Ore.) connected on a jumper in the paint with 8:23 showing before Warner Pacific used a 10-2 over a span of 1:43 to pull ahead by six points (33-27). The host Warriors got as close as four points (45-41) following back-to-back free throws by Sisler with just over a minute remaining, but Warner Pacific scored the final points of the opening half via a pair of free throw by Josh Jackson with 50 seconds on the clock en route to a six-point lead (47-41) at intermission.
In the second half, Warner Pacific pushed its lead to nine points (54-45) thanks to a pair of free throws by Martin just over two minutes into the final stanza. As they did earlier in the game, Corban stormed back and got within three points (54-51) by using a 6-0 run that included a fast-break lay-up by sophomore Paul Martin (Beaverton, Ore.) that put the exclamation point on the Warriors' come back. The host Warriors would pull within three points once again (58-55) with 13:33 left in the game as Sisler made another pair of free throws after the visiting Knights pulled ahead by seven points (58-51) with 15:22 showing on the clock. Corban would not get any closer as the nationally-ranked Knights extended their lead to as much as 21 points (87-66) with just over five minutes left. The game's final long distance shot came off the finger tips of Sisler, as he connected on a three-pointer with 59 ticks remaining to pull the Warriors within 11 points (90-81). Unfortunately, the deficit was too much for Corban as Warner Pacific scored the game's final points via a lay-up by Eddie Gallagher for the final margin of 13 points (93-80).
Along with Sisler, fellow senior Hannes Gehring (Lake Oswego, Ore.), Douglas, and Logan were the only other Warriors in double figures with 15, 13, and 11 points respectively. Gehring grabbed a team-high five rebounds, while Sisler, Logan, and freshman Bryan Martin (Salem, Ore.) pulled down four boards each. Freshman Clay Martin (Beaverton, Ore.) ended the night with a team-high seven assists, while Bryan Martin added five and Gehring registered two.
Warner Pacific was led by the conference's leading scorer Scott O'Gallagher, who tallied a game and team-high 34 points on 14-for-24 shooting from the field to go along with a perfect 6-for-6 performance at the free throw line. Meanwhile, Jackson and Martin added 17 and 16 points respectively while Pat Oury pulled down a game-high 12 rebounds. Martin missed a triple-double by one rebound and two assists, as the senior forward ended the night with 16 points, 9 rebounds, and 8 assists.
As a team, Corban shot 25-for-64 (39.1%) from the field including 9-for-31 (29.0%) from beyond the arc and 21-for-31 (67.7%) from the free throw line. On the other hand, Warner Pacific turned in a 36-for-68 (52.9%) performance from the field that included a 6-for-17 (35.3%) showing from three-point land and a 15-for-17 (88.2%) showing from the charity stripe.
With the loss, Corban falls to 9-18 overall, 4-13 in Cascade Collegiate Conference play. Meanwhile, Warner Pacific improves to 17-9 overall, 12-5 in CCC action. The Warriors will hit the hardwood again on Saturday, February 16th, when Corban hosts the Thunderbirds of Cascade beginning at 7:30 p.m. inside the C.E. Jeffers Sports Center on Senior Appreciation Night.
NOTE: Three Corban seniors -- Ben Sisler, Hannes Gehring, and Joey Jackson (Creswell, Ore.) -- will be honored in a pre-game ceremony as the Warriors' men's basketball program will thank the trio for their time spent donning the navy and gold.