Beavers Slug It Out, Post Another W; Elmquist Makes History

If you weren't in Braun Gym on Saturday evening for Caltech's rematch against UC Santa Cruz, you missed a dandy. The Beavers edged the Banana Slugs 63-62 thanks to 50 percent shooting from the field, 17 assists on 22 field goals, and six blocked shots. Todd Cramer paced Tech with 20 points while Mike Edwards had 11 points and 7 assists. Mike Paluchniak added seven points, three assists, two blocks, one steal and a team-leading eight rebounds.

Ryan Elmquist's first bucket put him in the 1,000 Point Club. His four blocked shots cemented his name in Caltech lore as he set the program mark for swats in a career, surpassing Ben Turk's record of 126.

Development Shows in Record Numbers

Success on the court cannot necessarily be measured by society's traditional sources, those being win-loss columns. At least not yet. Overall development has to be taken into account, and this year, there was certainly improvement.

With such a young and inexperienced team, it's impressive that a dozen program records fell this season. Witness the evolution of Caltech Basketball.

The shot blocking has been talked about and was certainly a positive. The Beavers recorded 92 rejections in their 25 games, smashing the 2008-09 squad's accomplishment of 76. Ryan Elmquist had much to do with the stat as he accounted for more than half of the blocks (an individual season record 50 that bested the talented Ben Turk '98), which was just seven fewer than he and Travis Haussler '09 turned in last season. The eight swats against Chapman was also a team first for getting-that-stuff-out-of-here in one game.

The other team record? Field goal attempts in a season. Certainly worthwhile considering the lack of scoring opportunities due to turnovers and limited offensive rebounding.

Freshman Mike Edwards turned out to be as good as advertised as he broke six individual records (most noteworthy his 62 3-point makes that overtook the trifectas of Josh Moats '97), and entered the Top 10 in four other categories, including points in a season (470), scoring average (18.8 ppg), free throw percentage (.777), and steals in a season (44).

Besides the Elmquist shot blocking party, the junior forward became the No. 1 player in season free throw attempts (208), as he surpassed the foul line feats of Bryan Hires '08. Elmquist already holds the mark for freebies made and attempted in one game (17 of 19).

First-year cagers Collin Murphy and Ethan Boroson also entered the Top 10 in steals for a season (35) and assists per game (3.3), respectively.

Here is the complete list of records in the new era. For everything else, check here.

Who Says Beavers Can't Block Shots?

Facing Cal Lutheran on February 3, 2010, the Beavers' five blocked shots propelled them into the team record books as they set the mark for most rejections in one season. The previous number was 76, a total that was accumulated during the 2008-09 campaign. Caltech's current team now has 88 with three games to play.

With Ben Turk '98 in the crowd this past Saturday night, junior Ryan Elmquist tied a 12-year old record for blocked shots in a season with 47. Elmquist, who totaled four blocks against Occidental, now has 103 blocks in his career. Turk owns the career record with 126 and maintains the mark for most rejections in one game with six. (Official release from Saturday night).

Elmquist, who through this past weekend was ranked among the nation's elite in blocked shots (2.1 bpg), has blocked three or more shots in seven games this season.

Caltech set a program record against Chapman University on January 6 for most swats in one contest with eight. Elmquist was responsible for five of those on that historic evening. (Official release from Chapman game).

Other Beavers who have aided the blocked shot effort?

All freshman.

6'7" Mike Edwards, 6'9" Jesse Shevin, and 6'2" Ethan Boroson.

6'0" point guard Collin Murphy is even in the mix.