SAN DIEGO - Marek Klassen made both his baskets count as he twice put the Point Loma men's basketball team in front with 3-pointers in the final minute of the game. His last one came with just three seconds left, in a 58-55 victory for the Sea Lions over Saint Martin's in the PacWest/GNAC Conference Challenge on Saturday, Nov. 15.
 
PLNU trailed with just over six minutes left in the second half before putting on a 9-2 run to go up by five (49-44) with 5:33 remaining. But the Saints would not go away and tied the game at 52-52 on a 3-pointer by Will Bond with 1:10 on the clock.
 
The Sea Lions then called timeout and set up a play for Klassen. Lescault got the inbound pass and found Klassen behind the arc for the go-ahead 3-pointer. SMU answered with the clock running down by finding Tyler Copp open for a 3-pointer to tie the game at 55-55 with 21 seconds left.
 
This time PLNU did not call a timeout after the bucket. Klassen brought the ball up the floor and dished it off before running off some screens and catching the ball on the wing. He was able to get separation from the defender for an open look at the basket. He rose up and sank the 3-pointer to put Point Loma up three with 2.9 on the clock.
 
Saint Martin's got the ball to half court with 2.3 on the clock and took a time out to set up the play. They inbounded the ball and Klassen tried to foul, as PLNU still had three fouls to give, but time ticked away before SMU (0-2) was able to get a shot or PLNU could make a foul.
 
"It is good to have experienced guys and a team that has been through these games in the past, and you don't want to rely on that, but sometimes you have to during a long season," PLNU head coach Bill Carr explained. "There was a play run for Marek and he made a really good play out of it. He got some separation and knocked down a huge 3 for us."
 
This was the second straight win for Point Loma to begin the season. The wins were also critical victories over two Great Northwest Athletic Conference and NCAA West Region opponents.
 
The Sea Lions had a very quality inside game with Junior Morgan and Zach Burnham. Morgan led the way with 14 points and seven rebounds, while Burnham added 12 points. The duo combined to shoot 11-of-19 from the field and also had three blocks.
 
"It was nice to see Junior and Zach get more active in there," Carr said. "I think they had 26 points combined and 10 rebounds. It was good with that to get a little more balanced scoring than we had been getting."
 
PLNU had four other student-athletes with six or more points. Hayden Lescault had nine points to go along with his six rebounds and team-leading six assists. Klassed added eight points and five assist, while Sam Okhotin and Randall Jackson each knocked down a pair of treys.
 
Point Loma had assists on 16 of its 20 baskets and committed just nine turnovers in the game. It also outscored SMU 28-18 inside the paint. Saint Martin's advantage came from behind the 3-point line where it made 10 treys to outscore PLNU by 12 points from long range.
 
"Our veteran guys made some plays offensively I just wish we would have made a few more plays defensively to give ourselves a bit of a cushion," explained Carr. "It's a learning experience as you go through a long year, and hopefully we will be better for it later in the season.
 
"We took care of the ball really well and got good shots," he continued. "We struggled to make some shots early but we made three big 3s late in the game when we needed them. Defensively I thought we were a little slow tonight. They made 10 3-pointers and that is not what we do. But credit to them. They moved us around, got some really good looks and made them."
 
Copp had three 3-pointers and 14 points to lead Saint Martin's. Bond and Trey Ingram added 11 points apiece.
 
Point Loma will be home again on Tuesday, Nov. 18 to face Cal State Dominguez Hills at 7:00 p.m.