No. 6 Firestorm Burned By No. 20 Royals
Glendale, Ariz.- Squaring off with the top defensive team in GSAC, Arizona Christian- ranked number six in the NAIA- was locked down by the defensive effort of the NAIA number 20 ranked Hope International on Thursday evening. The Firestorm had a tough night shooting- especially from behind the lines.
Game Info
- Game score: Hope International – 63, Arizona Christian – 55
- Records: Arizona Christian – 14-4, 2-2 GSAC, Hope International – 16-2, 4-0 GSAC
- NAIA Top 25 ranking: Arizona Christian – 6, Hope International – 20
- Location: ACU Events Center, Arizona Christian University, Glendale, AZ
ACU Stats For The Day
- Jalik Dunkley – 9 points
- Arik Nicholas – 9 points
- Anthony Howell – 8 points, 8 rebounds
- Tyler Silva– 7 points
- Lorenzo Wright – 7 points
Inside the Box Score
- Gonzalez and Nicholas both scored a bucket as ACU started with a 4-1 edge
- HIU scored the next six points to take the lead
- With five minutes and change left in the first half, Tucker Molina hit two free throws to force a 17-17 tie
- But the Royals closed the half on a 16-8 run to take and keep the lead
- Any comeback attempt was thwarted by the defense of HIU (top defense in the GSAC)
- Behind the three point and free throw lines, ACU struggled as they missed 19 three point attempts and 14 free throws
- After scoring 55 points in a half on Saturday, the Firestorm were held to a season low 55 points for the game
Thoughts from Coach Rutter
“We played really hard tonight for the most part. Proud of the fight till the end. We have a few areas, lacking consistency, and that’s holding us back a little bit. It’s on me, I gotta do a better job preparing us, but I like the resilience in this group and I think we’ll keep getting better.”
Up Next
On Saturday, Arizona Christian will be right back at it as they host Life Pacific at 2:00 pm.
