LA VERNE, Ca. – The Pomona-Pitzer men's basketball team ended the regular season with a walloping 90-61 win over the La Verne Leopards. With the win, the Sagehens are the SCIAC Regular Season Champions with a 13-2 conference record. Pomona-Pitzer shot 47.6% from downtown, making 10 of 21 while shooting 52.2% (36 of 69). The Sagehens outrebounded the Leopards 45 to 27 and saw 29 points off the bench. Pomona-Pitzer was led by Peyton Mullarkey who ended the night with 20 points. Matthew Eberle (19 points), Brendan Mora (16 points), and Joe Cookson (12 points) all ended the night with double-digits. 

How It Happened

The Leopards found the first bucket of the night and took an 8-4 lead over the Sagehens just under two minutes into the contest. Matthew Eberle cut the lead to one with a shot from downtown which got the Sagehens going on an 18-4 run to take a 22-12 lead with 13:24 to play in the first. La Verne was able to make a free throw and a layup, but the Sagehens kept rolling, going on a 15-0 run as Brendan Mora, Joe Cookson, Pete Boyle, and Matthew Eberle all continued to attack, extending the Sagehens lead to 37-15 with 4:57 left in the half. The Leopards outscored Pomona-Pitzer 13-6 to cut the lead to 15 points at 43-28 heading into the halftime break. 

The Sagehens showed no mercy in the second half against the Leopards. The two teams traded buckets in the early going but a Brendan Mora three and Matthew Eberle layup put the Sagehens up 52-34 with 17:53 remaining in the game. La Verne was able to hold the Sagehens to under a 20-point lead up until just under nine minutes to play. The Sagehens shot out to a 33-point lead after a 20-6 run that saw three-pointers from Ty Bergman and Joe Cookson. The run put Pomona-Pitzer up 90-57, their largest lead of the night. In the final few minutes, La Verne made four free throws, but it was Pomona-Pitzer ending the night with the win as they defeated the Leopards 90-61 to claim the SCIAC Regular Season Championship. The Sagehens end the regular season with an 18-4 overall record and a 13-2 conference record, clinching the No. 1 seed as we enter the SCIAC Postseason Tournament. 

What's Up Next

The Sagehens will be back in action on Feb. 23 to host the opening round of the SCIAC Tournament at a time to be determined.