Cypress had four scorers in double figures and eleven 3-pointers Wednesday night, keeping its slim playoff hopes alive with an 85-72 win over host Fullerton in Orange Empire Conference play.
Cypress (12-13, 3-5) used its long-range game to build a 17-point lead in the first half. Fullerton (9-16, 1-7) chopped that margin down to seven at halftime and to just two points early in the second half, but never quite pulled even and ended up suffering its sixth straight loss since a win at Cypress last month.
The lead went back and forth in the games early moments, at least until the Cypress threes started falling. A 3-pointer by SF Brett Spencer gave the Chargers a 12-7 lead. Another Spencer three made it 15-9. A 3-pointer by SG Tim Austin pushed the lead to double figures at 22-11 with 11:28 left.
But that was just the beginning. A 3-pointer by SG Reggie Abrams made it 25-13, then Abrams hit another to push the lead to 13 at 28-15. He later hit back-to-back threes to push the Cypress lead to 17 points at 36-19 with just over seven minutes left in the first half.
However, then the threes stopped falling for Cypress, and Fullerton rallied. A putback basket by SG Taylor Walker got the margin back to single digits at 39-30. And a Fullerton 3-pointer by PF Gregory Bewernick in the final minute of the half made it a seven-point game at 43-36 at the break.
When the second half began, Fullerton continued to chip away at the lead. A jumper by Ctr Kunnu Shofu from the free throw line in the first minute of the half made it a five-point game at 43-38. A dunk by Shofu after a steal by Walker made it 45-42. A free throw by SF Joshua Manning after a steal made it a two-point game at 48-46 with 16:51 left in the game.
But Cypress never surrendered the lead, and soon hit a few more threes to regain control of the game. A 3-pointer by Spencer, Cypress 10th of the night, made it a nine-point game at 60-51. Fullerton got within seven points at 62-55 on a traditional 3-point play by SG Serdana Wright. But Cypress got another three from Abrams and a pair of free throws from PF Troy Baugh to make it 67-55 with 10:53 remaining.
Fullerton cut the margin to single digits one more time with a 3-pointer from PG Steve Newton that made it 67-58. But Cypress got a traditional 3-point play from PF Brad Johnson to push the lead back to 12 at 70-58, and led by double figures the rest of the way. A pair of free throws by PG Tyquan Lee made it a 15-point game at 77-62 with 6:10 left, and Fullerton had no more rallies left.
Austin led all scorers with 18 pts off the bench for Cypress, and he also had a team-high 6 rebs. Abrams had 17 pts, including 5 threes, and Lee had 16 pts and a game-high 7 asts. Spencer had 14 pts, including 3 threes.
For Fullerton, J. Manning led the way with 15 pts despite playing most of the second half with four fouls. Shofu had 12 pts plus a team-high 6 rebs and a game-high 5 blocked shots. Walker had 10 pts and Wright had 9.
The win improves Cypress overall record to 12-13 and, more importantly, their conference record to 3-5, keeping their playoff hopes alive for another day. Fullerton, however, falls to 9-16 overall and 1-7 in the OEC with its sixth straight loss.
box score
Wednesday, February 3, 2010 7:30 pm
at the South Gym, Fullerton College
Orange Empire Conference
Cypress Chargers 85:
3-Reggie Abrams, SG 6/12 fg, 3 reb, 1 pf, 17 pts
5-Tyquan Lee, PG 3/7 fg, 8/10 ft, 2 reb, 7 ast, 1 stl, 3 pf, 16 pts
20-Troy Baugh, PF 1/3 fg, 5/8 ft, 5 reb, 4 ast, 3 pf, 7 pts
21-Devin Golston, C 3/7 fg, 2/2 ft, 4 reb, 3 ast, 1 blk, 2 stl, 2 pf, 8 pts
24-Brett Spencer, SF 5/14 fg, 1/3 ft, 5 reb, 3 ast, 2 pf, 14 pts
15-Tim Austin, G 7/12 fg, 3/3 ft, 6 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl, 3 pf, 18 pts
32-Brad Johnson, F 2/7 fg, 1/1 ft, 4 reb, 2 ast, 3 pf, 5 pts
10-E.J. Singleton, G 0/2 fg, 4 reb, 2 ast, 0 pts
4-Randall Laing, F 1 reb, 1 ast, 1 pf, 0 pts
52-Ashton Wilson, C 0 pts
team rebounds: 10
Totals: 27/64 fg (.422), 20/27 ft (.741), 44 reb, 24 ast, 1 blk, 5 stl, 18 pf, 85 pts
3-pt fg (11): Abrams 5, Spencer 3, Lee 2, Austin
Turnovers (14): Lee 6, Singleton 3, Spencer 2, Baugh, Austin, Johnson
Fullerton Hornets 72:
1-Taylor Walker, SG 3/9 fg, 2/3 ft, 5 reb, 3 ast, 1 stl, 1 pf, 10 pts
2-Joshua Manning, SF 6/13 fg, 3/6 ft, 5 reb, 2 ast, 2 stl, 5 pf, 15 pts
4-Michael Manning, PG 0/4 fg, 1 reb, 1 ast, 4 pf, 0 pts
10-Ayokunna Shofu, C 5/11 fg, 2/3 ft, 6 reb, 1 ast, 5 blk, 1 stl, 2 pf, 12 pts
32-Gregory Bewernick, PF 2/3 fg, 2 reb, 1 stl, 2 pf, 5 pts
0-Serdana Wright, G 2/9 fg, 4/5 ft, 3 reb, 2 stl, 9 pts
5-Joshua Rayne, C 1/2 fg, 3 reb, 1 blk, 4 pf, 2 pts
22-Steve Newton, G 2/4 fg, 1/3 ft, 1 reb, 2 ast, 1 pf, 6 pts
11-Isiah Williams, G 2/6 fg, 3 reb, 1 pf, 4 pts
34-Brandon Deforrest, F 2/2 fg, 4 reb, 1 blk, 1pf, 4 pts
21-Jason Reinhardt, C 2/3 fg, 1/2 ft, 4 reb, 2 pf, 5 pts
team rebounds: 6
Totals: 27/66 fg (.409), 13/22 ft (.591), 43 reb, 9 ast, 7 blk, 7 stl, 23 pf, 72 pts
3-pt fg (5): Walker 2, Bewernick, Wright, Newton
Fouled Out: J.Manning 1:39 left
Turnovers (16): Walker 3, Shofu 3, J.Manning 2, M.Manning 2, Newton 2, Reinhardt 2, Bewernick, Rayne
Halftime Score: Cypress 43, Fullerton 36
Updated Records: Cypress 12-13 overall, 3-5 in OEC; Fullerton 9-16 overall, 1-7 in OEC
Cypress led by 17 at 36-19 in 1st half. Fullerton rallied to within 2 at 48-46 early in the second half, but never quite pulled even.
