Men's Basketball News
'Cats put the clamps on Corban
December 05, 2009
Box Score

McMINNVILLE, Ore. - Zach Anderson (Fr., Carlton, Ore.) came off the bench to score 20 points and grab eight rebounds and Linfield put forth its best defensive effort of the season, as the Wildcats used a crisp second-half effort to beat Corban 80-63 Saturday night at Ted Wilson Gymnasium.
The Wildcats earned their first win of the season in their home opener, improving to 1-3 for the season. With the loss the Warriors drop to 4-5.
Entering the second half with a 42-38 lead, Linfield blew the doors down with a 12-3 run to open the period. Cody Tesoro (Sr., Kahului, Hawaii) capped off the spurt with a four-point play, sinking a 3-pointer at the top of the key to give Linfield a 54-41 lead at the 14:51 mark.
Anderson extended the lead to 58-44 with two straight baskets. Coming into the game averaging just 2.0 points per game, the reserve forward made his presence felt by going 9-for-17 from the floor.
The Warriors would get no closer than 12 points the rest of the evening. Tesoro put the game on ice with a 3-pointer with 6:44 remaining, giving Linfield a 74-52 advantage.
With opponents averaging just over 82 points per game coming into the night, the Wildcats clamped down and held the Warriors to 25 points in the second half. Corban shot an icy 23.3 percent from the floor over the final 20 minutes.
While the second half was controlled by Linfield, the first half was a see-saw battle.
Guard Joseph Vance (Fr., Vancouver, Wash.) paced the ‘Cats with hot shooting from the outside, going 3-for-4 from beyond the arc and finishing with 11 points in the frame. The scoring proved especially important after Tesoro, Linfield’s leading scorer, picked up his second foul midway through the half.
The ‘Cats took their biggest lead of the half at the 3:03 mark when Vance buried a 3-pointer from the right wing to give Linfield a 38-32 advantage.
With Anderson leading the charge, Kris Rainwater (Sr., Seattle, Wash.) provided a boost with 18 points on 6-for-9 shooting. Vance and Tesoro capped off a balanced attack with good performances on the perimeter. Tesoro scored 16 points while Vance added 15 points.
Ben Pofstloff led the Warriors with a team-high 18 points.
Corban shot just 35.7 percent from the field and was just 5-for-21 from 3-point range. Linfield did much of its damage at the free throw line, knocking down 19-of-24 free throw attempts.
NEXT: Linfield returns to action Sunday when the ‘Cats play host to Walla Walla University at 5 p.m.
Action Image

Zach Anderson
Leads 'Cats with game-high 20 points

More Information:
Linfield Men's Basketball
Men's Basketball Schedule
Men's Basketball Season Statistics

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Kelly Bird
Director of Sports Information
Linfield College
McMinnville, OR 97128
E-mail: kbird@linfield.edu
Phone: 503-883-2439
Fax: 503-883-2649