Feb. 25, 2009

Box Score

Stockton, Calif. - Playing for sole possession of third place in the Big West, the Pacific men's basketball team downed visiting UC Davis, 72-57, on Wednesday, February 25. The win moved the Tigers to 15-11 overall and 8-6 in Big West play while the Aggies fell to 12-16 overall and 7-7 in league play. It was the 47th straight win for Pacific in the all-time series.

Pacific jumped out to a 5-0 lead and led 15-8 after the first eight minutes, getting a pair of three-pointers from senior Michael Kirby (North Highlands, Calif.). The Aggies struck back with a 10-2 run to take an 18-17 lead with 8:01 to play. The Tigers held UC Davis to just three points over the final eight minutes while using a 10-3 run to take a 27-21 halftime lead. Sophomore Sam Willard (Pierre, S.D.) capped the run with his second three-pointer of the season.

The Tigers scored the first seven points of the second half, including a pair of three-pointers by senior Chad Troyer (Seattle, Wash.) as Pacific opened a 34-21 lead with 16:42 to go in the game. The Aggies cut the lead to 40-32 with 11:14 to play after a 7-2 run, and trailed 43-35 with 9:04 to go. Over the next five minutes, the Tigers used a 14-3 run to build a 19-point lead (57-38) with 4:15 remaining and put the game away. Pacific's lead did not fall below 13 the rest of the way.

The Tigers shot 49.0 percent from the field, including a season-best 68.4 percent (13-19) in the second half. Pacific held a 37-29 rebounding advantage, but the Aggies held a 14-12 edge in offensive rebounding.

Troyer led the Tigers with 19 points, while Kirby scored 13. Willard scored 11, adding a game-high nine rebounds. Junior Joe Ford (Altadena, Calif.) led the way all-around for the Tigers posting six points, five rebounds, four steals and seven assists, tying his previous career high in helpers.

The Tigers are next in action with a road game at Cal Poly on Saturday, Feb. 28. Tip time is set for 7:00 p.m. at Mott Gym.