The much-anticipated Orange Empire Conference showdown between #1 Fullerton and #5 Orange Coast turned out to be a mismatch as the host Hornets led wire-to-wire, posting an emphatic 25-point win and running their record to 26-0.
Ctr Michael Earl and PF Rodrick Johnson each scored 17 points while PG Corey McIntosh added 16 in a balanced Fullerton attack. But the most dramatic part of the victory was on the defensive end, where the Hornets (26-0, 6-0 in the OEC) held Orange Coast (18-8, 5-1) to 27% shooting and outrebounded the smaller Pirates, 49-31.
Johnson fed Earl under the basket for a lay-up 1:40 into the game to give Fullerton a 2-0 lead, a lead it would hold the rest of the game. McIntosh scored on a lay-up to make it 4-0 moments later. OCC got on the board when SG Steve Mendoza made a three, but Fullerton scored the next 8 points to take a 12-3 lead.
Orange Coast rallied to cut that margin to 3 at 17-14 after PG Lance Ortiz scored a pair of baskets on putback and dished to Ctr Steven Cornett for another basket midway through the first half. But then McIntosh made four free throws and fed Johnson for a basket, and PF Sean Phaler added a jumper, as Fullerton pushed its lead to 11 at 25-14. The Hornet lead fluctuated between 8 at 10 the rest of the half and Fullerton went into intermission holding a 29-19 advantage.
And as soon as the second half began, Fullerton went on an 11-0 run to put the game away. Johnson scored on a putback of his own miss to make it 31-19, and McIntosh made a pair of free throws to make it 33-19. Then Johnson scored on a jam on a feed from SG Tim Denson to push Fullerton’s lead to 16 at 35-19 less than a minute into the second half. A FG+FT 3-point play by Earl made it 38-19 with 18:21 left. And Earl finished the run after grabbing a steal, making a one-handed shot as he was being dragged down in the lane to make it 40-19. He missed the ensuing free throw, but by that time the Hornets were in complete control of the game. The lead eventually reached 31 at 69-38 late in the game.
In addition to the 17 points, Earl also had 6 rebs, 3 blocks and 4 steals for the Hornets. And in addition to his 16 points, McIntosh also had 8 rebs and 5 asts. SF Phil Jones added 8 pts and a game-high 9 rebs, while Phaler came off the bench to contribute 8 pts and 8 boards. The Hornets’ inside dominance was shown by their ability to get to the free throw line; Fullerton finished 29-of-36 from the line (compared to 9-of-17 for OCC).
For Orange Coast, Ortiz led the way with 8 pts, 5 rebs and 5 asts. Ctr Matt Davis and SF Greg Okudibonye each added 8 pts. No Pirate reached double figures in the scoring column. Okudibonye also had 2 blocks and 3 steals while Davis had 3 blocks and a steal before fouling out midway through the second half.
box score
Wednesday, January 25, 2006 - 5:30 pm
at The Hornets' Nest - Fullerton
Orange Empire Conference
Orange Coast Pirates 45:
5-Lance Ortiz, PG - 3/10 fg, 2/2 ft, 5 reb, 5 ast, 8 pts
15-Steve Mendoza, SG - 1/3 fg, 2 reb, 3 pf, 3 pts
21-Alvin Jackson, SF - 0/1 fg, 1 ast, 1 pf, 0 pts
33-Reggie Brown, PF - 2/12 fg, 2 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk, 1 stl, 1 pf, 8 pts
40-Matt Davis, C - 4/6 fg, 3 reb, 1 ast, 3 blk, 1 stl, 5 pf, 8 pts
3-Mykel Valentine, G - 0/2 fg, 2 reb, 1 ast, 2 pf, 0 pts
11-James Estrada, G - 0/2 fg, 1 reb, 2 pf, 0 pts
24-Greg Okudibonye, F - 3/10 fg, 0/2 ft, 1 reb, 2 blk, 2 stl, 2 pf, 8 pts
25-Rodrick Ulmer, F - 0/2 fg, 1/2 ft, 1 reb, 1 stl, 1 pf, 1 pt
34-Steven Cornett, C - 2/5 fg, 0/1 ft, 5 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk, 2 stl, 4 pf, 4 pts
32-Cameron Wise, F - 1/4 ft, 1 reb, 1 pf, 1 pt
14-Aaron Green, G - 0/1 fg, 1 stl, 0 pts
13-Miguel Gonzalez, G - 1/3 fg, 5/6 ft, 2 reb, 2 stl, 1 pf, 7 pts
42-Dan Rudisil, C - 0/2 fg, 0 pts
23-Marcus McAdams, F - 2 reb, 1 pf, 0 pts
team rebounds: 4
Totals: 16/59 fg (.271), 9/17 ft (.529), 31 reb, 10 ast, 7 blk, 11 stl, 24 pf, 45 pts
3-pt fg (4): Okudibonye 2, Mendoza, Brown
Fouled Out: Davis 8:20 left
Turnovers (17): Estrada 3, Okudibonye 3, Cornett 3, Ortiz 2, Jackson 2, Gonzalez 2, Brown, Ulmer
Fullerton Hornets 70:
3-Corey McIntosh, PG - 3/7 fg, 10/10 ft, 8 reb, 5 ast, 1 stl, 1 pf, 16 pts
4-Phil Jones, SF - 3/5 fg, 2/2 ft, 9 reb, 1 stl, 2 pf, 8 pts
12-Tim Denson, SG - 0/4 fg, 4 reb, 3 ast, 4 pf, 0 pts
21-Michael Earl, C - 6/7 fg, 5/5 ft, 6 reb, 1 ast, 3 blk, 4 stl, 1 pf, 17 pts
23-Rodrick Johnson, PF - 6/10 fg, 5/6 ft, 2 reb, 2 ast, 1 blk, 17 pts
2-Jibri Taylor, G - 0/4 fg, 0/1 ft, 5 reb, 3 ast, 2 pf, 0 pts
22-Kurt Graeber, C - 1/6 ft, 1 reb, 1 blk, 1 stl, 1 pf, 1 pt
5-Sean Phaler, F - 1/7 fg, 6/6 ft, 8 reb, 1 blk, 3 pf, 8 pts
11-Alex Mallari, F - 1/4 fg, 1 reb, 3 pf, 3 pts
10-John Butler, G - 3 pf, 0 pts
team rebounds: 5
Totals: 20/48 fg (.417), 29/36 ft (.806), 49 reb, 14 ast, 6 blk, 7 stl, 20 pf, 70 pts
3-pt fg (1): Mallari
Turnovers (24): McIntosh 4, Taylor 4, Earl 3, Johnson 3, Mallari 3, Graeber 2, Phaler 2, Butler 2, Denson
Halftime Score: Fullerton 29, Orange Coast 19
Updated Records: Fullerton 26-0, 6-0 in OEC; Orange Coast 18-8, 5-1 in OEC
