Westmont Men’s Basketball (2-0) put on their second show in as many opportunities on Saturday night, as the Warriors rolled to a 108-53 win over the Caltech Beavers. After a lopsided win against La Sierra on Opening Night, Westmont fans saw much of the same on Saturday thanks to Westmont’s explosive offense.
“Watching these two games, you’d be surprised to know two-thirds of our roster is new,” said Westmont head coach Landon Boucher. “By the way we’re sharing the ball, you’d think we’d been together for a while. We’re in sync on offense, and had another 20-assist game. I’m pleased with what I’ve seen so far.”
Amir Davis led the team offensively with 18 points, as Cade Roth and Cly Griffith added 17 of their own. Drew Ramirez scored 14, Anthony McIntyre scored 12, and Zeke Viuhkola scored 10, giving the Warriors six scorers in double-figures.
Two nights after scoring a program-record 23 3-pointers, the team sank another 16 threes in 30 attempts. Roth made five of six from beyond the arc, Griffith added four and Ramirez had three of his own.
“Our 3-point shooting was stellar again,” nodded Boucher. “30 attempts is around the number we like. Our collective shooting is a priority of ours, and something we take a lot of pride in.
“Any night, it could be any guy. Tonight it was Cly off the bench, who had 11 points in the second half. Drew got hot as well, having only two points at halftime. We know it can’t just be one guy. We need to have several guys who are ready to make a play.”
Collectively, Westmont shot 65.1% from the field (41-63), while holding Caltech to a clip of 38.5% (20-52). Westmont also won the turnover battle emphatically, committing only six turnovers compared to Caltech’s 25. The Warriors collected 14 steals, with Jalen Townsell grabbing four, and Davis and Viuhkola each snagging three.
On the boards, Kyler Warren led the Warriors with seven rebounds, while also scoring seven points.
“Having Kyler play the way he did tonight was really helpful off the bench,” said Boucher. “When we have Kyler off the bench playing like that, it’s big for us.
“Jalen couldn’t play as much as he wanted because his shoe was falling apart, but he still had four steals and six assists. I’m really pleased with the effort I saw tonight.”
The Warriors return to the court on Tuesday night when they host the Bethesda Flames at 6 p.m. in Murchison Gym. Links to tickets and live coverage will be available on the Westmont Athletics website.
“Tuesday is going to be a great game,” offered Boucher. “Bethesda is going to come with something we haven’t seen yet, in regards to their defensive pressure and athleticism. It’s going to be a different challenge, we’ll be ready for it.”
Jacob Norling is the sports information assistant at Westmont College.
email: sports@newspress.com
