Whittier, Calif. – If the Mt. SAC Men's Basketball Team enjoys keeping fans on the edge of their seats, mission accomplished.
Despite having a significantly better record, the Mounties found themselves in a back-and-forth fight Wednesday night, navigating six ties and 15 lead changes before finally pulling away for an 88-75 victory over Rio Hondo.
After a tough loss to ELAC last week, Mt. SAC improves to 21-4 overall and remains tied with the Huskies atop the South Coast Conference North standings at 6-1. The Roadrunners drop to 9-16 overall and 1-6 in conference play.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Both teams got off to a slow start, struggling to find their rhythm before Rio Hondo finally got on the board with a layup from Ryan Osborne after two minutes of play. Zion Booker put the Mounties in front with a three-pointer before Sebastian Esparza added a three-pointer for the Roadrunners, as an early indicator of the back-and-forth momentum of this game.
Mt. SAC controlled the glass in the first half, outrebounding Rio Hondo 23-12, with Jeremy Williams and Ethan Nelson combining for eight boards. Dayvon Gates led the offense with 13 first-half points.
But there was one problem: turnovers. The Mounties committed 11 in the opening half compared to just five by the Roadrunners, allowing Rio Hondo to surge ahead.
Late in the half, Gates landed a layup and a free throw to briefly reclaim the lead, but Rio Hondo closed strong with a layup from Osborne and a three-pointer from Bode Karunwi to take a 42-38 advantage into the break.
The second half picked up right where the first left off. Ryan Wheeler tied the game at 42-42 with a jumper, but Rio Hondo continued to respond to every Mountie push. It wasn't until a layup from Alejandro Munoz with under 10 minutes to play that Mt. SAC grabbed its first lead of the half at 60-59.
The teams continued to trade buckets before Dominic Copenhagen knocked down a jumper with under nine minutes remaining to put the Mounties ahead for good.
Munoz was dominant down the stretch, scoring 14 of his 16 points in the second half while pulling down 11 rebounds for a double-double. Gates added 12 second-half points of his own and finished the night filling up the stat sheet once again.
When the final buzzer sounded, the Mounties had turned a nail-biter into a comfortable 88-75 win — eventually.
KEY PLAYERS:
- Dayvon Gates: Game-high 25 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 steal
- Alejandro Munoz: 16 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals
- Ryan Osborne (Rio Hondo): Team-high 19 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, 1 block
NEXT UP:
The Mounties will welcome Pasadena City College (11-14, 2-5) on Friday, February 13, at 5:00 PM.
STAY CONNECTED:
Follow Mt. SAC Men's Basketball on twitter @MtSAC_MBKB or Instagram /mt.sacbasketball/
Follow Mt. SAC Athletics on twitter @MtSAC_athletics Instagram /mtsac_athletics/ or Facebook @Mountie.Athletics
For additional information, please contact the Mt. SAC Sports Information Office at 909.274.4630.