Oxy Defeats Willamette on Day One of the Tiger Poet Classic

WHITTIER, Calif.  (Dec. 3, 2009) - Occidental once again co-hosted the annual Tiger Poet Classic with Whittier College.  This year the event pitted the two SCIAC programs against a pair of Northwest Conference squads.  On day one Oxy tipped off against the Willamette Bearcats, jumping out to a big first half lead before watching the Bearcats battle back.  After closing with a flurry in the first half, Willamette could not maintain the momentum, and the Tigers turned a close game at the half into another double digit victory.

After trailing 6-5, Oxy went on a 16-0 run to take a 21-6 lead after the first six minutes of play.  Dior Williams led the way with 8 points, 2 steals and an assist during the opening stanza.   Willamette settled down and began to chip away at the lead, pulling within seven with 4:34 left in the half.  Laura Mohler connected on a three pointer to stem the tide, and Stephanie Babij added a couple of freethrows, but the Bearcats answered with a four point run of their own to cut the deficit back to single digits.  Oxy went into the locker room with a 38-30 advantage but momentum was up for grabs.

The Tigers came out on fire to start the second half, with Williams as the catalyst again, scoring 9 points during a 17-6 run to open the second half.  This time momentum would take up permanent residence in the orange and black as the Bearcats (1-4) could not mount a serious threat in the second half.

Williams led the Tigers with 19 points and a game high 6 steals.  Makenzie Brandon had her "usual" outing with another double double night, as she grabbed 10 boards to go along with 12 points.  Babij also had a strong night inside with 13 points and 8 rebounds.    Willamette's Alex Zennan led all scorers with 27 points.

Oxy (4-1) will return to Rush Gymnasium on Friday, December 4^th for day two of the Tiger Poet Classic as they will face Lewis & Clark at 7:30pm.