LOS ANGELES, Calif. (Dec. 7,2010) – Incredible ball movement and accuracy coupled with rebounding were the name of the game tonight behind a career performance from Jake Copithorne, who was an assist shy of a triple-double, and Deshun McCoy, who also posted a double-double, as the Occidental College men's basketball team out-rebounded West Coast Baptist 46-27 in a 63-51 victory over the Golden Eagles tonight at Rush Gymnasium.

Occidental got off to a hot start, reeling off eight unanswered points to start things and never looked back in the non-conference match-up. The Tigers combined to shoot 55 percent from the field in the opening half while limiting the visitors to a shooting clip of just 22 percent.

"We executed very well on offense and played sound defense in all facets of the game in the first half," Head Coach Brian Newhall commented following the contest.

Oxy pushed their lead to 10 points with 12:29 to go in the opening stanza and would never relinquish that double figure lead as the Tigers held a comfortable 35-18 lead at the intermission.

Copithorne and freshman Ty Cobb each pulled down eight rebounds in the first half alone and Copithorne handed out five assists in the first 20 minutes of play. McCoy led all players, tallying 12 first-half points, finishing with a game-high 16.

Coming out of the locker rooms, Copithorne and McCoy seemingly switched roles as Copithorne, Oxy's junior forward from Newton Centre, Mass., had more opportunities to score, driving the ball in the paint, finishing the game 5-for-6 from the floor for 11 points. He was recorded game-highs with nine assists and 15 rebounds.

When asked about tonight's memorable game, Copithorne noted how fantastic the passing was as a whole. Occidental combined for 21 assists on 29 baskets.

"Guys were making shots tonight; assists don't come without guys making shots. I was getting to the top of the key and finding guys down low. Kris [Montoya], Deshun and Ty all shot really well tonight."

His comments following the game were a testament to his team mentality.

"My stats just show how well everyone else played," a humble Copithorne said.

The Tigers shot 50 percent from the floor.

"Jake played an outstanding game. He showed his work ethic and his incredible 'team first' attitude jumped off the stat sheet tonight," Newhall pointed out.

Copithorne went on to talk about his opportunities to put the ball in the net.

"Once I got some passes off they looked at me to pass a lot more and it just opened up some driving lanes and kept them honest. The more you pass the more you get better shots inside as was the case tonight."

After a solid opening half, the team showed traces of being tired, going 12-for-27 (44%) from the field and were not quite as vibrant of a team. Oxy turned the ball over just five times in the first half, but miscues led to eight losses of possession during the final 20 minutes of play.

"We lost focus in the second half and were not able to sustain our play," Newhall added, "We will continue to improve and use every game to prepare for SCIAC play."

Kris Montoya joined in on the double-figure scoring with 15 points, hitting all three of the Tigers' three-pointers tonight.

Cobb gave Oxy a big lift off the bench, turning in his best collegiate performance to date. Before fouling out with just 1:38 remaining in regulation, he scored nine points with eight rebounds for the Black and Orange.

Nick Robinson shot 4-for-6 tonight for eight points and finished with a block as did Cobb, Copithorne and Montoya.

Seven of the eight players to enter the game had at least one assist. Sam Stapleton dished out three while Cobb, Robinson and Eric Leider each finished with a pair. In limited minutes, coming off an injury, Jeff Irwin had an assist and a rebound.

With the win, Occidental improves to 4-2, but there is still work to be done before league play begins.

 "We have to step up our intensity and play 40 minutes," Copithorne concluded.

Occidental will use the next week plus to prepare for a show-down with Division I Cal State Fullerton on the road Saturday, Dec. 18 with tip-off scheduled for 6:00 p.m.

Article by Tracy Maple, Sports Information Director