Here is a game-by-game summary for the 7 games I attended on the first day of the 2016 SoCal JUCO Shootout.
Box scores for these games are linked below.
Citrus 54, Long Beach 46
KC Cyprian scored 15 pts, including 3 three-pointers, and Josh Caston came off the bench for 11 pts and 3 three-pointers as Citrus edged Long Beach at noon.
Citrus used its hot shooting to jump out to a 17-8 lead, at which point Cyprian and Caston had already combined for 5 threes. The Owls led, 31-27, at the break, after making 7 threes in the first half.
Long Beach shut down Citrus' long-distance game in the second half and didn't allow another three. And the Vikings surged into the lead with an 11-3 run, powered by William English, who scored 9 of the points in the run. That gave Long Beach a 42-36 lead.
Citrus responded with a 17-4 run, taking a 45-44 lead on a driving lay-up by Latrelle Franklin with 2:55 left. Long Beach went back into the lead on a 2-point free throw by Tyler Pool, but Citrus got a 2-point free throw from Cyprian and led the rest of the way. Andrew Ammann hit a short jumper and Calvin Martin made a 2-point free throw to make it 51-46, and Jeremy Smith added a 2-point free throw for the Owls to close out the scoring.
Cyprian led all scorers with his 15 pts. Caston had 11 and Franklin had 10. Smith had 8 pts and 4 asts, and Ammann had 2 pts and a team-high 6 rebs.
For Long Beach, English had a team-high 11 pts, and Justin Richardson had 10. Matt Arrivas had a team-best 6 rebs.
Irvine Valley 63, Rio Hondo 44
Lamont Tyler scored 18 pts on 7-for-10 from the floor and also grabbed 6 rebs to lead Irvine Valley to a most impressive win over Rio Hondo.
Irvine Valley took a quick 10-4 lead and extended the margin to as many as 16 points in the first half following a 3-pointer by Anthony Hernandez with just over 5 minutes left before halftime. It was 35-20 at the break.
Rio Hondo got within single digits when Trevon Welch made a three to make it 41-32. But after making his shot, he was assessed a technical foul and ejected. Rio got within 9 later in the half at 49-40, but never got any closer.
Irvine Valley put the game away with a 9-0 run, extending its margin to 18 points after a short jumper by Zane Paddon made it 58-40.
Tyler led all scorers with his 18 pts. Bekim Djokovic came off the bench for 11 pts, including 3 three-pointers, and had 5 rebs. Nate Barker had 8 pts, and Paddon came off the bench for 6 pts and a game-high 8 rebs. Overall IVC shot 48% from the floor with 7 threes and just 9 turnovers.
For Rio Hondo, Kenyatta Louderscored a team-high 14 pts and also grabbed a team-best 4 rebs. Christian Smith had 9 pts and Welch had 8 despite the early exit. Deshaun Carr had 5 pts and 5 asts.
Cerritos 52, Sequoias 45
Dezmon Murphy and Demetrius Thomas each scored 10 pts as host Cerritos won its second day of the day, a 7-point victory over College of the Sequoias.
Cerritos jumped out to a 14-6 lead and never trailed. The margin reached double digits when Anthony Lefeau scored from in close to make it 25-15, and the Falcons led, 27-18, at the half. The margin bulged to as many as 17 points at 42-25 in the second half.
Sequoias rallied to close the gap to 5 points with 2:48 left when Austin Armstead scored on consecutive 3-point plays to make it 50-45. But then Thomas made a 2-point free throw for Cerritos and, during the shot, COS' Kentrey Bynum suffered a shoulder injury battling for rebounding position. The game was ended with 1:55 still on the clock as EMS was summoned to take him to the hospital.
Thomas finished with 10 pts and 5 rebs, and Murphy had 10 pts on 4-for-5 from the floor. Perez had 6 pts and a game-high 8 rebs. Tyler Payne had 4 pts and a game-high 3 asts.
For Sequoias, Armstead scored a game-high 12 pts and also had 2 rebs and 2 asts. Isaiah Johnson had 9 pts and 7 rebs.
Barstow 53, Santa Ana 51
Christian Drayton and Borja Soriano March each scored 10 pts and Jacob Lilley had 9 pts and a very important blocked shot as Barstow won a back-and-forth game.
The lead changed hands numerous times throughout the game. Barstow led by 6 points in the first half at 17-11. Santa Ana rallied to tie the score at 23 at the half, and Santa Ana scored the first 5 points of the second half to lead, 28-23. Barstow went on an 11-2 run to take a 34-30 lead, but it was back and forth for the next few minutes.
Santa Ana took a 46-41 lead after a jumper by D'Caran Anderson, but Barstow went back in front, 47-46, on a basket by Will Peirce after a blocked shot by Drayton. Cameron High made a free throw for Santa Ana with 1:28 left to put the Dons ahead, 48-47, but Peirce scored on a drive moments later to put Barstow back in front. Lilley made two 2-point free throws to make it 53-48 with 21.0 seconds left.
Santa Ana got a 3-point free throw from High with 14.4 seconds left to make it 53-51, and got the ball back after Lilley missed a free throw with 12.5 seconds to go. And the Dons had 3 chances to tie or take the lead. But all 3 shots missed, the last one blocked by Lilley under the basket with 1.2 seconds left, atoning in a big way for the missed free throw and allowing Barstow to hold on for the win.
Drayton finished with 10 pts, 8 rebs and 3 blocks, and March came off the bench for 10 pts, 6 rebs and 2 asts. Lilley had 9 pts, 3 rebs and one very important blocked shot. Peirce and Clay Evans each had 7 pts. Kane Keil had 5 pts and game-highs of 9 rebs and 3 asts.
For Santa Ana, Royal Hardaway scored a game-high 14 pts, including a pair of 3-pointers. Michael Crosby had 9 pts and 5 rebs, and High came off the bench for 8 pts, 2 rebs, 2 asts and a steal.
Victor Valley 51, Palomar 50
Jared Montgomery scored 12 pts as Victor Valley held off a wild late rally by Palomar to emerge with a 1-point win on the main court Friday.
After Palomar jumped out to an early 10-6 lead, Victor Valley suged into the lead with a 16-4 run and seemed to take control of the game. VVC held a 24-16 lead at the half, and scored the first 8 points of the second half to lead, 32-16.
The lead was 16 points again at 41-25 when Palomar started to rally. The second of two 3-pointers by Jackson Strong brought the Comets within 5 points at 43-38 with about 2 minutes remaining. A third 3-pointer by Strong brought Palomar within two points at 47-45 in the final minute.
VVC seemed to put the game away when Joseph Rushing made a 2-point free throw with 10.1 seconds left to make it 51-47. But Sean Birk was fouled trying a 3-pointer with 3.1 seconds left and made the resulting free throw to make it 51-50. And when Rushing missed a free throw with 1.0 seconds left, Palomar had one desperate chance to win. But Birk's last-ditch desperation shot missed at the final horn.
Montgomery led the Rams with 13 pts and 7 rebs. Rushing had 9 pts and 4 rebs, and Garrett White had 9 pts and 4 asts.
For Palomar, Strong scored a game-high 17 pts, including 4 three-pointers, and Birk had 16 pts.
Merritt 42, Antelope Valley 32
Tyrell Alcorn, Arinze Chidom and D.J. Kennedy each scored 8 pts and SoCal native Brandon Russell made a pair of free throws late to clinch a 10-point win for Merritt over Antelope Valley.
It was a defensive-minded slugfest, especially in the first half, when points were few and far between for both teams. AVC started the game with 6 turnovers on its first 8 possessions and neither team scored in the first 5:20.
Merritt took the largest lead of the first half for either team at 13-8 after a 2-point free throw by Russell, and the Thunderbirds led, 15-11, at the break. Merritt led despite shooting just 22% (4/18) from the floor in the half as AVC was shooting just 33% (5/15) with 10 turnovers.
Both teams settled into more of a flow in the second half, and Merritt held a 20-15 lead after a 3-pointer by Kennedy. AVC went on a 9-0 run to lead, 24-20, after a jumper by Cory Dollarhide, but Merritt answered with a 12-2 run to lead, 32-26.
AVC got within four at 34-30 when Chidom banked in a shot with just under a minute to go to make it 36-30. Alcorn made one 2-point free throw and Russell, who attended El Camino Real HS in Woodland Hills before heading up to Oakland, made two 2-point free throws in the final 36.7 seconds to clinch the win for Merritt.
Reggie Byers was AVC's top performer coming off the bench for 8 pts, 4 rebs and 4 asts. Jailen Gill had 7 pts, 3 rebs, 2 asts, a block and a steal, and Antone Warren had 6 pts, 6 rebs and 2 blocked shots.
Sierra 44, LA Harbor 36
Pindo Dramneh scored 11 pts and Eric Toles scored 9 as Sierra pulled away late for an 8-point win over LA Harbor.
Neither team led by more than 4 points until Sierra took a 17-12 lead with just over 3 minutes left in the first half. The Wolverines held a 21-16 edge at the break, and pushed the margin to 9 when Toles dunked following a steal by Kuente Howard to make it 27-18 early in the second half.
Harbor rallied to tie the score at 31 on a 2-point free throw by Donald Hughes with 7:21 to go, but never went into the lead. Kosh Rai and Isaiah Quintero each made 2-point free throws to put Sierra back in front, 35-31, starting an 8-0 run, and the Wolverines led the rest of the way. Dramneh hit a 3-pointer with about a minute left to make it 44-33 and clinch the win for Sierra.
Dramneh led all scorers with 11 pts and he also had 6 rebs. Toles had 9 pts, and Quintero had 8. Howard had 4 pts and 6 rebs. Kenny Macklin came off the bench for 2 pts and a team-high 3 asts.
For Harbor, Hughes had a team-high 8 pts and Joel Anderson came off the bench for 7. Paulo Hugo had 6 pts and a game-high 4 asts. Sebatian Linder had 4 pts and a team-high 6 asts.
Box Scores Available
Citrus 53, Long Beach 46
Irvine Valley 63, Rio Hondo 44
Cerritos 52, Sequoias 45
Barstow 53, Santa Ana 51
Victor Valley 51, Palomar 50
Merritt 42, Antelope Valley 32
Sierra 44, LA Harbor 36
