After another strong first half, the Park University Gilbert men's basketball team (0-2) faltered once again in the second half to fall to No. 9 Arizona Christian 97-88 on day 2 of the Fultz Memorial Classic at the ACU Events Center. For the second consecutive game the Buccaneers allowed 90-plus points in a loss.
"We couldn't guard," said Buccaneers Head Coach Gordon Stubblefield. "I thought we did a good job in the first half, in the second half they turned it up and we backed down."
The first half saw the Buccaneers put a scare in the ninth-ranked Firestorm holding the lead on a number of occasions as the Buccaneers exchanged the lead with Firestorm eight times, held a five-point lead at one point and only trailed by one 42-41 at the half. The Buccaneers held ACU to 35 percent shooting in the first frame, while the Buccaneers shot 45 percent from the floor and a gaudy 52 percent from beyond the three-point arc. Senior Jake Ellis was a big reason for the impressive first half percentage scoring 12-points on 4-6 shooting from long range. Junior Germain Remy, not known for his shooting knocked down 2-3 from downtown to contribute to the Bucs cause.
The second half saw the ACU start to pull away as they improved on their shooting, upping their percentage to 53 percent and 44 percent on three-pointers. The Bucs percentage slipped, as they managed to shoot 42 percent and only 33 percent from three. For the second game, Park Gilbert allowed their opponent to score 50 or more points in the second half after holding them to the low 40's in the first.
Ellis led the team with 24 points on 6-10 shooting and was 5-8 from beyond the arc and was perfect from the free throw line (7-7). Eric Patton recorded his first double-double of the year with 21 points and 13 rebounds as Park Gilbert scored over 80 points for the second consecutive game. Last year the Buccaneers didn't score 80 points until their eighth game and only topped the mark in eight games last year. This is the fourth 20-point scoring game for both Ellis and Patten (not including their 30-point games).
Carson Mittun dished out five assists and had seven rebounds for the Bucs and junior Bishop Thomas added three dimes to go along with his first five points as a Buccaneer. The Buccaneers had five players in double digits scoring as sophomore Jonah LaBranche (14), Remy (10) and sophomore Martin Simon (10) all managed to reach the mark.
"I've got to give it to my guys," said Stubblefield. "When we got down in the second half, they fought back and didn't give up. We will get back in the lab and get these issues corrected and come out ready to play next Thursday."
Next up for the Buccaneers is their home opener at The PHHacility against SAGU-AIC on Thursday, November 5. Starting time is 7:30 p.m. The Buccaneers won both contests against the Warriors last year, winning 104-88 on the road and 87-76 at home.
