PG Antonio Biglow had 25 pts and Ctr Kaimyn Pruitt and PF Kane Robinson each had double-doubles as #4 Mt. San Antonio (21-4, 5-0) remained unbeaten in SCC-North play, holding off a late rally from host LA Trade Tech (11-8, 2-3) to post a 73-71 win Friday night.
This was in many ways a typical traditional SCC-North battle, and Trade Tech also fought a war against attrition as the Beavers battled against injuries, foul trouble and a physical Mt. SAC defense, only to come up just short in the final minutes.
Early on, neither team led by more than four points until Ctr Josh White made a pair of free throws after a rebound to give Mt. SAC a 23-18 lead with 5:49 left in the first half. Then a jumper by PG Ariel Hall-Jones made it 25-18.
Trade Tech was already without its third-leading scorer and top rebounder, Ctr Yashin Ali, who was out with a shoulder injury, and PF Jason Williams had already left the game with a leg injury. Then SG Clifford Sutherland, LATT's leading scorer, injured his ankle after taking a jump shot and his team trailing, 27-22, and left the game not to return.
Mt. SAC took advantage, getting a lay-up against the shorthanded Beavers as Sutherland lay injured on the floor, and then added a 3-pointer by SG Rashad Bias a minute or so later to take a 32-22 lead with just under three minutes left in the half. A basket by Pruitt pushed the margin to 11 at 35-24 with 1:05 left in the half.
Trade Tech cut the deficit to eight points when PG Christopher Johnson hit a 3-pointer in the final minute of the half, and then began the second half on a 10-2 spurt to get within two points at 37-35 after a 3-pointer by PG Daundrekcyc Parham. A jumper by SF Darnell Campbell made it a one-point game at 40-39 with 14:40 left in the game.
Mt. SAC pushed the lead back to eight points after consecutive 3-pointers by Biglow, and pushed the lead to nine points when White converted a pass from SF Laquenten Jones and made it 55-46. Jones had picked up two fouls in the first two minutes of each half, and battled foul trouble all night. The lead reached ten points at 63-53 after a pair of free throws by Robinson with 6:09 left, and Mt. SAC led again by ten at 65-55.
And Trade Tech had foul trouble of its own, most notably from Ctr Austin Bowen, the team's second-leading scorer and rebounder. LATT cut the deficit to four points at 65-61 after a basket by Ctr Tyron Lyons, but then Bowen fouled out with 3:41 left. Still, LATT continued to rally, cutting the margin to a single point at 66-65 after a Lyons putback with under three minutes to play.
But Mt. SAC never surrendered the lead. Hall-Jones hit a jumper for Mt. SAC to make it 68-65, but Parham scored on a putback of his own miss after a steal to make it 68-67. Then Jones hit two free throws for Mt. SAC to make it 70-67 with 1:29 left, and it was still 70-67 as the clock ticked below a minute.
Then LATT seemed to get the break it needed when Parham deked Bias into fouling him while attempting a 3-point shot. But Parham made just one of the three free throws, leaving LATT behind, 70-68, with 37.8 seconds left.
LATT had no choice but to foul, and sent Jones to the line for Mt. SAC with 31.5 seconds left. He missed both free throws (Mt. SAC was in the double-bonus), but Pruitt grabbed the rebound of the second miss and scored on the putback to make it 72-68.
Then LATT got another break when Campbell drove for a lay-up with 19.7 seconds left and drew a foul. He made the free throw to convert the 3-point play, making it a one-point game again at 72-71. Then LATT quickly fouled Bias, but Mt. SAC got just a single point when Bias made just one of two free throws with 17.2 seconds left, making it 73-71.
LATT had a chance to tie or take the lead, but the Mt. SAC defense proved too tough. As the clock wound down, Parham still had the ball and had to settle for an off-balance jumper from behind the free throw line, which missed. Pruitt slapped the ball away towards midcourt, and the buzzer sounded, allowing Mt. SAC to escape with the win.
For Mt. SAC, Biglow led all scorers with 25 pts, including 6 threes. Robinson had 12 pts and 12 rebs, while Pruitt had 11 pts, 12 rebs, 3 asts, 2 blocks and 3 steals. Hall-Jones came off the bench for 6 pts and 4 asts, and White came off the bench for 7 pts and 7 rebs.
For Trade Tech, three reserves kept the Beavers in the game. Lyons came off the bench and had a career night with 15 pts, 9 rebs and 8 blocked shots. Parham had 12 pts plus 5 asts and 3 steals. And PF Josh Chatman contributed 9 pts and 8 rebs. Bowen managed 10 pts, 7 rebs, 3 asts and 2 blocks before fouling out. Campbell had 9 pts and 7 rebs, and Johnson chipped in with 8 pts.
The win is Mt. SAC's 9th straight, and leaves the Mounties firmly in control of the SCC-North with a 21-4 overall record and a 5-0 mark in divisional play. LATT falls to 11-8 overall and 2-3 in the SCC-North.
box score
Friday, February 5, 2010 - 7:30 pm
at LA Trade Tech
South Coast Conference - North Division
Mt. San Antonio Mounties 73:
4-Laquenten Jones, SF - 0/4 fg, 2/4 ft, 4 reb, 4 ast, 1 blk, 1 stl, 4 pf, 2 pts
20-Rashad Bias, SG - 2/4 fg, 1/2 ft, 3 reb, 5 ast, 1 blk, 2 stl, 3 pf, 6 pts
23-Kane Robinson, PF - 4/15 fg, 4/10 ft, 12 reb, 1 blk, 1 stl, 2 pf, 12 pts
24-Antonio Biglow, PG - 7/18 fg, 5/7 ft, 1 reb, 1 stl, 1 pf, 25 pts
34-Kaimyn Pruitt, C - 5/8 fg, 1/3 ft, 12 reb, 3 ast, 2 blk, 3 stl, 4 pf, 11 pts
3-Ariel Hall-Jones, G - 3/7 fg, 4 ast, 1 stl, 2 pf, 6 pts
11-Dontay Sanford, F - 1/3 fg, 1/2 ft, 1 reb, 4 pts
33-Josh White, C - 2/4 fg, 3/4 ft, 7 reb, 2 blk, 2 stl, 3 pf, 7 pts
32-Demarkus Isom-Jones, G - 0 pts
22-Troy Hines, G - 0 pts
team rebounds: 4
Totals: 24/63 fg (.381), 17/32 ft (.531), 44 reb, 16 ast, 8 blk, 11 stl, 19 pf, 73 pts
3-pt fg (8): Biglow 6, Bias, Sanford
Turnovers (18): Pruitt 6, Bias 2, Hall-Jones 2, Sanford 2, White 2, Biglow, Isom-Jones, Hines, team
LA Trade Tech Beavers 71:
1-Austin Bowen, C - 4/11 fg, 2/4 ft, 7 reb, 3 ast, 2 blk, 5 pf, 10 pts
4-Darnell Campbell, SF - 3/7 fg, 3/3 ft, 7 reb, 2 ast, 1 stl, 2 pf, 9 pts
5-Christopher Johnson, PG - 3/10 fg, 1/1 ft, 1 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl, 2 pf, 8 pts
20-Irvin Flores, PF - 0/2 fg, 1 pf, 0 pts
34-Clifford Sutherland, SG - 2/9 fg, 1/2 ft, 4 reb, 3 stl, 1 pf, 6 pts
23-Jason Williams, F - 0/2 fg, 4 reb, 0 pts
25-Derrick Edwards, F - 1/2 fg, 1 reb, 1 ast, 3 pf, 2 pts
13-Daundrekcyc Parham, G - 4/12 fg, 3/5 ft, 3 reb, 5 ast, 3 stl, 1 pf, 12 pts
24-Tyron Lyons, C - 7/13 fg, 1/2 ft, 9 reb, 3 ast, 8 blk, 1 stl, 3 pf, 15 pts
33-Josh Chatman, F - 3/6 fg, 3/6 ft, 8 reb, 1 blk, 3 pf, 9 pts
team rebounds: 9
Totals: 27/74 fg (.365), 14/23 ft (.609), 53 reb, 15 ast, 11 blk, 9 stl, 21 pf, 71 pts
3-pt fg (3): Johnson, Sutherland, Parham
Fouled Out: Bowen 3:41 left
Turnovers (19): Parham 5, Campbell 3, Johnson 3, Flores 3, Williams 2, Bowen, Sutherland, Lyons
Halftime Score: Mt. San Antonio 35, LA Trade Tech 27
Updated Records: Mt. San Antonio (#4-South, #6-Calif) 21-4, 5-0 in SCC-N; LA Trade Tech 11-8, 2-3 in SCC-N
Mt. SAC led by 10 with just over 5 mins to go. LATT got it to within a point, but Parham's jumped in the final seconds missed
Sutherland and Williams both left the game due to injury
