As part of a multi-year project to digitize Westmont Athletic records, Warrior men’s basketball rosters, athlete profiles, statistics, schedules and results reaching back to the early 1950s are now available online. Fans and alumni are able to access the men’s basketball history by visiting the Westmont Athletics web site.

The goal of the project, which was begun in the summer of 2005, is to preserve the Westmont Athletic archives in digital form and to make the archives available to Warrior fans. Westmont has a strong athletic tradition which is highly valued by today’s coaches, administrators and athletes. The purpose of the project is to honor that tradition and celebrate those who have made contributions to the Warrior legacy.

John Moore, head coach of Westmont Men’s Basketball, has announced the signing of Preston Branson of Dallas, Texas.

“Preston Branson is a winner,” said Moore. “Preston helped his team win a state championship with his ability to score at the basket and led his team through his tenacious competitive spirit. He is a left hander who has a scorer’s mentality and has a knack for getting into the crease of the defense and putting the ball through the net.”

Branson led Trinity Christian Academy of Addison to a state championship in Division V of the Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools playoffs. The 6-2 guard scored 37 points as TCA defeated Prestonwood Christian by a score of 64-50 in the title game. Branson posted a season average of 21.6 points while shooting 46.6% from the floor. He also averaged 3.9 assists and 3.2 rebounds.

Two of Westmont’s coaches and two athletes were honored at the Santa Barbara Athletic Round Table’s 42nd Annual Hall of Fame Banquet on Monday night at the Fess Parker Doubletree Resort in Santa Barbara.

Westmont Assistant Basketball Coach Jeff Azain was inducted into the SBART Hall of Fame in recognition of his accomplishments on the basketball court both in both high school and college.

“In 1980 and 81, Jeff was the leading rebounder in the Channel League and CIF,” said Maury Halleck who coached Azain at San Marcos High School and introduced him at the event. “The thing about Jeff is that for two years the San Marcos Royals never lost a game, they were 52-0. Jeff is the guy who gave all of his teammates second chances and was one of the best I ever had. He was not only a good athlete, but also a great man.”

“Two words come to mind when accepting this award,” said Azain to the audience. “The first is ‘blessed’. I was fortunate enough to play for two great men - Coach Halleck at San Marcos High School and Coach Kammerer at Westmont College. They were both great coaches, but more importantly that coaching basketball, they taught me about life and how to be a better man.

Westmont forward Dan Rasp has been named to the 2009 All-Golden State Athletic Conference Men’s Basketball Team.

“Dan is a consummate Westmont basketball player because he makes things look easy,” said Westmont head coach John Moore. “You get to the end of the day and are surprised to see he had 20 points, was 12 of 13 from the free throw line or seven of eight from the field.”

The sophomore led the Warriors with 480 points (16.0/game), shooting 56.1% from the floor and making 160 of 204 free throw attempts (78.4%). Rasp was second on the team in rebounding, averaging 5.0 per game.

“He shot more free throws for me than any other player I have coached,” said Moore. “Thirty-five percent of the free throws taken by our team were taken by Dan.”

Rasp’s 2008-09 performance at the charity stripe ranks sixth in free throws attempted by a Warrior in a single season and seventh (tied with Santiago Aguirre) for free throws made. Rasp made more free throw attempts than any Warriors since John McAdams in the 1962-63 season.

The 2008-09 season came to an end for Westmont Men’s Basketball, despite a valiant effort at a second-half comeback at Azusa Pacific on Thursday night. Playing in the first round of the Golden State Athletic Conference Tournament, the Warriors fell to the Cougars by a score of 85-76.

Azusa Pacific started the game with a 12-0 run in the first three minutes of play, but Dan Rasp nailed two free throws and Evan Haines and Chris Jackson each connected on jumpers to cut the Cougar’s lead in half (12-6) with 14:22 remaining in the first half.

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Senior guard Tyler Dutton put up 17 points and sophomore center Evan Haines added 13 points and five rebounds, but the Warriors could not keep pace with #18 Azusa Pacific (21-9, 14-6) on Monday night in the Cougars’ Felix Events Center. The 84-62 loss dropped Westmont’s record to 16-13 overall and 10-10 in conference action but did not effect the Warriors’ sixth place finish in the Golden State Athletic Conference standings.

The Warriors stayed close to the Cougars through the first eleven and one-half minutes, trailing by just a single point (19-18). But a 12-0 Azusa run provided the Cougars a double-digit lead which Westmont was unable to overcome. By halftime, the Warriors were down by 16 points, 40-24. In the second half, Westmont narrowed the gap to 12 points on two occasions, but could get no closer.

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It was the last game seniors Tyler Dutton and Nasa Sete will play on the hardwood of Murchison Gymnasium and it is a game that will not soon be forgotten. Westmont (16-12, 10-9 GSAC) posted an 84-66 win over Vanguard as every player on the Warrior roster scored at least four points.

The first half proved to be a close battle with eight ties and five lead changes. But the Warriors scored the last seven points of the first half to take a 36-30 lead into the locker room. Dutton nailed a three pointer with 2:33 remaining on the first half clock and Sete powered his way to the basket for a layup with a minute before the break. Junior point guard Christopher Jackson added a steal and a layup to close out the half.

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Sophomore forward Dan Rasp and junior point guard Christopher Jackson each scored 18 points but it wasn’t enough to keep Westmont Men’s Basketball from falling to #6 Fresno Pacific on Tuesday night in Fresno. The Sunbirds improved their record to 24-4 overall and 17-1 in the Golden State Athletic Conference with a 97-84 win over the Warriors (15-12, 9-9 GSAC).

“We played well, we shot 56%, but they shot 61%,” said Westmont head coach John Moore. “I was pleased that our guys played with much better intensity in the second half.”

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