PF Josh Smith and SG Aaron Brevard each scored 14 points as #9 Saddleback rallied after a dreadful start to get past #5 Antelope Valley in a second-round game of the 2012 RCC Holiday Tournament on Thursday.
Saddleback (6-2) got off to a slow start, to say the least, missing 14 of its first 15 shots and sprinkling in 8 turnovers over the game's first 13 minutes.
But Antelope Valley (4-4) was moving nearly as slowly, and built just a 9-2 lead until SF Darnell Taylor made one of two free throws with exactly seven minutes to go in the first half.
That made free throw seemed to wake up the Gauchos, who made 17 of their remaining 31 shots and committed just 10 more turnovers over the game's final 27 minutes and outscored AVC, 48-33, from that point on.
Saddleback took an 11-10 lead after a 3-pointer by Brevard and a 3-point play by Smith with 4:49 left in the first half. Antelope Valley went back in front on a 3-pointer by SG Lucas Gamiz, and the lead went back and forth the rest of the half. PF Vadal Faniel hit a fall-away jumper by for AVC in the final minute of the half to give the Marauders a 20-18 lead at the break.
The game remained close well into the second half, and was tied at 32 with just under nine minutes to go when Smith scored off a nice pass from SG McKay LaSalle and Taylor scored on a driving lay-up for his first field goal of the game to give the Gauchos a 4-point lead.
AVC PF Daviyon Draper blew a wide-open lay-up at one end, leading to a 3-pointer by LaSalle the other to make it 39-34. Two more baskets by Brevard and a basket by Taylor off a pass from PG Decorrius Sampson-Young after a steal made it 45-34 with 2:30 to play.
Antelope Valley made one last rally, closing the margin to five points at 45-40 after a steal & lay-up by Gamiz with just over a minute left. Saddleback nearly turned the ball over on a 5-second count after the basket, and after a timeout nearly turned it over on the inbounds pass, but eventually got a free throw from Smith to make it 46-40 with 39.5 seconds left.
AVC got a short jumper from PG Michaelyn Scott with 28.9 seconds left to make it 46-42, but never got any closer. Taylor and PG Miles Green each made two free throws in the final 22.1 seconds to seal the win for Saddleback.
Smith finished with 14 pts and a game-high 13 rebs for a double-double, and added a block, an assist and 2 steals. Brevard had a huge impact off the bench with 14 pts, including a pair of threes, and LaSalle also made a big contribution with 3 three-pointers for 9 pts and a nifty assist on Smith's drive that broke the game's last tie.
For Antelope Valley, Gamiz came off the bench for a game-high 16 pts, including 4 three-pointers, and also grabbed 3 steals. He was the only Marauder to score in double digits. Scott had 8 pts, 3 asts and 5 steals.
box score
2012 RCC Holiday Tournament
Thursday, December 6th @ Wheelock Gym, Riverside
Second Round Game - 1 pm
Saddleback Gauchos 50:
10-Decorrius Sampson-Young, PG - 0/1 fg, 1 reb, 4 ast, 2 stl, 1 pf, 0 pts
13-Josh Smith, PF - 5/10 fg, 4/7 ft, 13 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk, 2 stl, 14 pts
20-Alexis Moore, SG - 0/3 fg, 2 reb, 1 ast, 0 pts
23-Darnell Taylor, SF - 2/7 fg, 3/6 ft, 4 reb, 1 ast, 2 pf, 7 pts
34-Carlton Hayes, C - 0/5 fg, 4 reb, 5 stl, 3 pf, 0 pts
11-Miles Green, G - 2/2 fg, 2/3 ft, 1 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl, 6 pts
35-Casey Oldemoppen, C - 0/1 fg, 1 blk, 1 pf, 0 pts
31-McKay LaSalle, G - 3/5 fg, 1 ast, 1 pf, 9 pts
21-Terrence Fulton, F - 0/1 fg, 0 pts
24-Aaron A.J. Brevard, G - 6/11 fg, 1 reb, 1 ast, 1 pf, 14 pts
33-Rashad Davis, C - 1 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk, 1 stl, 0 pts
team rebounds: 6
Totals: 18/46 fg (.391), 9/16 ft (.563), 33 reb, 11 ast, 3 blk, 11 stl, 9 pf, 50 pts
3-pt fg (5): LaSalle 3, Brevard 2
Turnovers (18): Sampson-Young 4, Smith 3, Taylor 2, Green 2, Brevard 2, Hayes, Oldemoppen, LaSalle, team 2
Antelope Valley Marauders 42:
2-Terrance Berry, SG - 1/3 fg, 4 reb, 4 ast, 1 pf, 2 pts
12-Michaelyn Scott, PG - 4/11 fg, 0/1 ft, 2 reb, 3 ast, 5 stl, 2 pf, 8 pts
21-Vadal Faniel, PF - 2/4 fg, 2/4 ft, 3 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl, 1 pf, 6 pts
24-Larry Slaughter, SF - 4 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl, 1 pf, 0 pts
42-Dwan Caldwell, C - 2/5 fg, 3 reb, 2 blk, 4 pf, 4 pts
20-Lucas Gamiz, G - 6/10 fg, 3 stl, 2 pf, 16 pts
11-Daviyon Draper, F - 1/5 fg, 6 reb, 2 pts
33-Zachary Hollis, C - 0/1 fg, 3 pf, 0 pts
10-Julius Bilbrew, G - 2/5 fg, 0/2 ft, 3 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl, 1 pf, 4 pts
1-Joe Prince, G - 1 pf, 0 pts
32-John Washington, F - 0/1 fg, 0/2 ft, 1 reb, 0 pts
team rebounds: 3
Totals: 18/45 fg (.400), 2/9 ft (.222), 29 reb, 10 ast, 2 blk, 11 stl, 16 pf, 42 pts
3-pt fg (4): Gamiz 4
Turnovers (19): Faniel 4, Slaughter 4, Bilbrew 3, Caldwell 2, Berry, Scott, Draper, Hollis, Prince, team
Halftime Score: Antelope Valley 20, Saddleback 18
Updated Records: Saddleback (#9-South, #16-Calif) 6-2, Antelope Valley (#5-South, #9-Calif) 4-4
AVC led 9-2 until Taylor made 1 of 2 FTs with 7 minutes left in the first half. At that point Saddleback was 1-for-15 from the floor with 8 turnovers.
Saddleback took its first lead at 11-10 with 4:49 left in the 1st.
It was last tied at 32. Then Saddleback went on a 13-2 run to lead 45-34 with 2:30 left.
AVC got within 4 at 46-42 with 28.9 seconds left, but 2 FTs each by Taylor and Green clinched the win for Saddleback.
