Box Score

After building up a 30-19 halftime lead, #24 Fresno Pacific allowed visiting Point Loma Nazarene to find its rhythm from the three-point line in the second half as the Sea Lions would come away with a 70-64 win behind 25 second-half points from guard Marek Klassen. It was the first time FPU had been defeated by PLNU (9-4, 2-2 GSAC) in Fresno since February 2004.

The Sunbirds (10-5, 1-3 GSAC) dropped their second conference game of the week, allowing the Sea Lions to go on a 15-0 second-half run which erased a four-point Sunbird lead with 13 minutes to play and put PLNU up 11, 53-42, with 7:18 remaining. FPU would cut the deficit to five with 2:38 left when George DeLeon's driving layup made the score 59-54.

DeLeon finished the bucket with contact, but was injured as he hit the floor and was unable to attempt the resulting free-throw. With FPU's top defender out of the game, Klassen would drain his seventh three-pointer of the half on the ensuing possession to put PLNU up 62-54.

The Sunbirds would continue to battle and Matt Christman's three-pointer with 31 seconds left made it a one-possession game again at 64-61, but PLNU's Greg Murray would sink four crucial free-throws down the stretch to seal the win for the Sea Lions.

"Our gameplan didn't change," said FPU coach Chris Wright following the loss, "but in the first half we executed and in the second half we didn't."

"We're lacking consistency across the board [the last two games]," he said. "We need to be a lot more consistent on the defensive end. We had far too many missed assignments and missed block-outs. The game meant more to them than it did to us and it showed in the second half."

PLNU made 11-of-17 three-pointers in the second half (65%) after making just 1-of-12 in the first. The Sunbirds meanwhile were just 4-of-21 from long range. FPU did dominate the points in the paint category, outscoring the Sea Lions 40-18, but PLNU would make its living from outside the arc.

Klassen finished with 25, all in the second half, and guard Hayden Lescault added 19 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Murray would finish with 10 points.

DeLeon led the Sunbirds with 13 points. Eric Hipolito had 12, Donte Nicholas finished with 11 and Christman added 10. Antonio Credit had a game-high eight rebounds to go with nine points and three blocks.

FPU had won the last eight meetings with PLNU in Fresno coming into tonight and the last seven meetings overall. The Sunbirds will look to get things together quickly as they host #9 Azusa Pacific on Tuesday night at 7:30 pm.