Poor Broncos Shooting Pushes Pacific Past Santa Clara
By Robert Perry
Long scoring droughts can be deadly. Pacific made the Broncos pay for it.
Santa Clara (12-17, 6-11 WCC) scored just four points in the first ten minutes and Pacific used some late free throws to edge the Broncos 64-57 in Santa Clara.
The game got off to a slow start offensively. Pacific (12-17, 4-13 WCC) built a 10-4 advantage midway through the first half, where they led by as many as seven. Santa Clara had a series of runs, but went into halftime down 22-19.
Pacific had four players reach double figures, as Eric Thompson and Ray Bowles led the way with 11 points apiece. Jared Brownridge led the Broncos with 18 points.
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The Tigers managed to keep a lead of four points or greater for most of the second half. With just under a minute left in the game, Jacob Lampkin made a pair of free throws to push Pacific’s to a 60-47 advantage. From there, things started to change drastically for the Tigers.
Layups by Brandon Clark and Jarvis Pugh combined with two free throws from Clark closed the gap to a 60-53 edge.
With 22 seconds left, Dulani Robinson made free throws to seal the game for Pacific.
The win ties Pacific with Loyola Marymount for last place in the WCC. The Tigers have now won two games in a row, which they have not been able to do since mid-December. One more win would tie their longest winning streak this season.
The loss keeps Santa Clara tied for eighth place in the WCC with San Francisco.
WHAT’S NEXT
Pacific ends the regular season at San Francisco on Saturday.
Santa Clara ends the regular season at Saint Mary’s on Saturday.