REDLANDS, Calif. - Menlo College's second half comeback was two seconds from complete then Evan Atwater sunk a 3-point dagger as the Oaks dropped a 69-67 heartbreaker to George Fox in the opening round of the 62nd Annual Lee Fulmer Memorial Tournament at University of Redlands on Thursday night. 

 

Menlo erased an 11-point second half deficit to set up the tense final minutes. A Ryan Dung 3-pointer gave the Oaks their first lead since the opening minute of the game with four minutes, 21 seconds left at 61-60. After Dan Lingenfelder reestablished a lead for George Fox, Andrew Young converted a pair of free throws to tie the score with two and half minutes remaining. Drew Davis later added two more from the charity stripe to tie the game again with just more than one minute to play.

 

Following a Cole Whitehurst free throw that gave the Bruins the lead once more, Menlo forward Nick McCullar hit a jumper in the paint to give the Oaks a 67-66 advantage with 24 seconds left on the clock. The Oaks clamped down on defense, forcing an Alex Stockner miss that ended up in the hands of Davis, who was fouled.

 

With a chance to extend Menlo's lead to three points and clinch at least a shot at overtime, Davis missed the front end of a one-and-one. Stockner rebounded the miss and George Fox pushed the ball up floor, finding Atwater for the game-winning 3-pointer.The Oaks couldn't get desperation shot off before the buzzer and were sent into the tournament's consolation bracket.

 

Menlo trailed by as many as 13 in the first half before scoring a baker's dozen without a Bruins response to tie the score at 22 midway through the half. Freshman guard Brent McHone started the spurt with a layup before Harris caught fire. The Oaks leading scorer hit a two-point jumper before draining three consecutive 3-pointers in the span of one minute, 37 seconds. George Fox still led 40-36 at halftime.

 

In the second half, the Bruins pushed their lead to 52-41 on a three-point play by Stockner with six minutes gone. A Dejon Grant layup and Dung's first 3-pointer quickly got Menlo back into the game, but it wasn't until Dung's next long-range bomb that the Oaks turned the deficit completely around just before the four-minute mark.

 

Harris scored a game-high 20 points on 5-of-10 3-pointers for the Oaks while Young and McCullar each battled down low. Young totaled nine points and as many rebounds with McCullar netting nine points and grabbing eight rebounds. Tim Kees scored eight points while Davis and Dung tallied six apiece. Menlo struggled at the free throw line, converting just 12 of 21 attempts.

 

Rich Smith finished with a double-double for George Fox, scoring 13 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. Stockner netted a team-high 15 points; Lingenfelder had 14, and Atwater 10. Atwater's only 3-pointer of the game came on his last shot.

 

Menlo is now 2-4 and takes on West Coast Baptist on Friday at 3:30 p.m. West Coast Baptist (2-5) lost 104-73 to Redlands in the first round. George Fox is 2-1 overall and takes on the hosts at 7:30 p.m. on Friday.