SAN DIMAS, Calif. – An 18-5 run over the final 3:34 of regulation in today's non-conference road matchup for the Corban University Men's Basketball team wasn't quite enough for the Dubs to return to .500 on the early 2025-26 season, as Life Pacific University hung on for the narrow 68-66 win on their home court despite a game-winner for the Navy and Gold falling just short.
"Another tough road loss, but so many things to be proud of because the guys refused to hang their heads despite early struggles and kept staying together with their collective mindset," explained Warriors' head coach Wayne Mendezona. "We had a ferocious comeback in the final five minutes with a chance to win it on a layup and putback but came up just short. However, I couldn't be prouder of our guys, as I believe we are continuing to figure things out and better days are ahead. We just need to keep pushing forward with shaping our mindset and everything will be fine."
Corban (1-3) opened the contest on a 6-0 scoring run, yet the host Warriors (4-2) quickly rallied and led for the remainder of the contest, establishing a nine-point halftime lead before eventually leading by as many as 15 points with under four minutes to play. However, the Navy and Gold didn't go down without a fight, as they quickly rallied to pull within a single point and nearly had the game-winner drop with five seconds remaining. Instead, they'll return to Salem harboring from a narrow two-point loss before their final non-conference road trip south of Oregon.
True freshman guard Landon Knox dropped a career-high 17 points in just his fourth collegiate game, representing the only Corban student-athlete in double-figure scoring despite ten other players scoring at least two points. Both junior guard Joe Gould and redshirt senior guard Anjay Cortez added nine points apiece.
Guards Xerian Anderson and Jayceon Smith tallied 19 and 16 points, with Anderson hauling in seven rebounds. Guard Joby Barnes dealt out a game-high six assists.
One final trip to California separates the Navy and Gold from their home opener, as they'll travel to the Simpson Classic, hosted by Simpson University, for games on November 21st and 22nd against California State University-Maritime (4-0) and tourney host Red Hawks (2-3), respectively.
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