LOS ANGELES — Turnovers can turn games in the wrong direction.

The Occidental men's basketball team knew coming into this game that they would have to  handle 40 minutes of full-court pressure from an athletic, fast-paced Whittier team. Instead Oxy struggled to take care of the ball, losing 65-46 at Rush Gymnasium as their 22 turnovers led to nearly a third of Whittier's total points.

"They sped us up," Occidental coach Brian Newhall said. "Knowing the style of defense Whittier plays, we came into this game with the mindset of the old John Wooden quote: 'Be quick, don't hurry,' and we did just the opposite. We were rushed, and quite frankly on offense we were incompetent."

Whittier's (10-4, 2-1) defense rattled the Tigers (7-7, 2-1), causing them to commit early what would look like a post-game box score, as they turned the ball over 13 times in the first half.

With black and purple jerseys trapping, scrapping, and swarming their every move, the Tigers struggled to find a lasting rhythm on the offensive end, often shooting difficult shots on the first pass of a possession.

Occidental coach Brian Newhall could often be heard throughout the gym commanding his team to "slow down" on offense, but the Poets' defense hardly allowed for it.

Oxy finished the game shooting just 24 percent both from the field and beyond the arc.

Key starters Deshun McCoy (Los Angeles) and Jake Copithorne (Newton Centre, MA) combined for just 10 points.

Though three Tigers posted double figures, as Jack Hanley (Seattle) scored 13 points, Kris Montoya (Portland) had 12 points, and Conrad Liebowitz (Santa Monica) got a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds, Oxy would only come within 12 points.

Oxy's comeback push was spurred by a late first half switch to a zone defense, pulling the breaks on the athletic, running Poets to limit easy layups in the paint. Oxy cut the lead to 10 at halftime.

Still, Whittier proved to be just as poised from outside in the half-court set, led by Drew Menez' 19 points off of short corner midrange jumpers. Greg Preer chipped in with 14 points.

With their first loss in SCIAC play, the Tigers look forward to Wednesday's game against Redlands at 7:30 p.m. at home.

"We visibly got down on ourselves tonight when things weren't going well," Newhall said. "We can't do that against Redlands, another very good team. We've got to bounce back and come together as a group."