PG Carlos Rivers had a game for the ages, and he got some timely help from SF DaShawn Strong and SG Kenneth Eatmon as LA Valley (14-12, 6-3) got past visiting Glendale (12-12, 4-5), 91-87. The Monarchs shot 71% in the second half, scoring 54 pts, to keep a grip on second place in the WSC-South.
Rivers posted a triple-double, finishing with 22 pts, 11 rebs and 15 asts. After missing 7 of his first 8 shots, he made 3 threes in a row and scored 19 of his points after halftime. His darting layup with just under a minute to play gave LA Valley a 90-87 lead, and his steal with 7 seconds left helped the Monarchs keep the lead. He was fouled moments later, and his FT with 5 seconds left sealed the win.
LA Valley also got a huge game from SF DaShawn Strong, who finished with 22 pts on 9 of 13 shooting. With Glendale leading, 86-82, Strong hit a three from the corner to bring the Monarchs to within a point. Moments later he passed to Eatmon, who hit a three from the same corner, to give Valley an 88-86 lead.
This was an evenly-played game throughout the night. Glendale led by as many as 11 in the first half following an 11-4 run. A three by Ctr Durwin Williams, a pair of baskets by SF Mike Newton and a putback by SF Alex Banks gave the Vaqueros their double-digit lead. But Valley rallied behind a 2-pt and a 3-pt basket by Strong, a FT by Eatmon and a basket by PF Earl Felix to tie the game at 32. Glendale still held a narrow 39-37 lead at the half after Strong's 3-point attempt at the buzzer rimmed out.
Valley took a 55-49 lead midway through the second half on three straight feeds by Rivers to Ctr Vincent Cofield, Strong and Eatmon, who completed the 3-point play with a FT. But Glendale hung around, largely due to the scoring of Williams. It was still tied at 78 with just under 5 minutes left with a basket and a three by PG Jason Flowers gave Glendale an 83-78 lead.
But Valley rallied on a basket by Eatmon, which came on Rivers' 15th assist of the night. Moments later, Rivers drew a foul that was Flowers' 5th personal of the night. He made both FTs to make it 83-82 Glendale, but the Vaqueros would have to play the rest of the game without their point guard.
Nonetheless, Glendale pushed their lead to 86-82. First, PF Mark Felder barely beat the shot clock buzzer with an 18-foot jumper. Then Williams drew a foul on Glendale's next possession, which was Ctr Jayme Miller's 5th foul of the night. Williams made 1 FT, making it 86-82. But following the threes by LAVC's Strong and Eatmon, the Vaqueros would score just one more point the rest of the way.
Rivers finished 6 of 15 shooting, including 3 threes, and absolutely dominated long stretches of the game. His 15 assists were 10 more than any other player had, and his 11 rebounds were game-high. He also had just 2 turnovers, which were offset by his 2 steals. Eatmon finished with 9 pts, including his big three. Felix came off the bench to add 12 pts and 3 boards. In fact, neither Rivers nor Strong started the game either, though Rivers played the whole way after entering the game about 5 minutes in.
Williams had a marvelous game for Glendale, finishing with 27 pts on 9 of 12 shooting, 6 rebs and 4 asts. All five Glendale starters scored in double figures: Flowers had 14 (and 5 asts), SG Justin Turman had 11 (with 6 rebs and 5 asts) while Felder and Newton each scored 10 and each grabbed 7 boards.
With the win, LA Valley keeps ahead of Citrus and Glendale for second place in the WSC-South and keeps what appears to be the division's final playoff spot. Glendale falls to 4-5 in the division with their third straight division loss.
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Unofficial Box Score:
Friday, February 6, 2004 – 7:30 pm
At LA Valley College, Valley Glen
Glendale Vaqueros 87:
11-Justin Turman, SG – 4/12 fg, 3/3 ft, 6 reb, 5 ast, 3 stl, 11 pts
12-Mark Felder, PF – 2/9 fg, 6/9 ft, 7 reb, 1 ast, 2 stl, 10 pts
32-Jason Flowers, PG – 4/7 fg, 4/6 ft, 4 reb, 5 ast, 4 stl, 14 pts
35-Mike Newton, SF – 4/14 fg, 2/3 ft, 7 reb, 3 ast, 2 stl, 10 pts
44-Durwin Williams, C – 9/12 fg, 5/7 ft, 6 reb, 4 ast, 1 blk, 2 stl, 27 pts
10-Irv Moses, G – 1/4 fg, 3 reb, 1 ast, 3 pts
22-Travis Bean, F – 0/1 fg, 1 ast, 0 pts
42-Alex Banks, F – 3/8 fg, 2 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl, 8 pts
45-Charles Koffi, F – 1/1 fg, 2/6 ft, 1 stl, 4 pts
team rebounds: 5
Totals: 28/68 fg (.412), 22/34 ft (.647), 40 reb, 21 ast, 1 blk,15 stl, 87 pts
3-pt fg (9): Williams 4, Flowers 2, Banks 2, Moses
Fouled Out: Flowers 3:37 left, Williams 5 secs left
Turnovers (21): Felder 5, Turman 4, Newton 4, Flowers 3, Williams 3, Bean, Banks
LA Valley Monarchs 91:
4-Jeffery Lim, PG – 0/1 ft, 1 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl, 0 pts
21-Kenneth Eatmon, SG – 3/4 fg, 2/4 ft, 3 reb, 2 ast, 1 stl, 9 pts
31-Casey Bednash, SF – 2/4 fg, 2 reb, 1 ast, 4 pts
32-Rendell Pegg, PF – 0/2 fg, 0/3 ft, 4 reb, 2 blk, 2 stl, 0 pts
42-Jayme Miller, C – 3/3 fg, 0/1 ft, 4 reb, 3 ast, 1 stl, 6 pts
22-Curtis Isom, G – 3/7 fg, 2 reb, 2 ast, 8 pts
12-Carlos Rivers, G – 6/15 fg, 7/9 ft, 11 reb, 15 ast, 2 stl, 22 pts
23-DaShawn Strong, F – 9/13 fg, 2/4 ft, 5 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk, 22 pts
33-Aaron Johnson, F – 1/1 fg, 1 ast, 1 stl, 2 pts
35-Earl Felix, F – 5/7 fg, 2/3 ft, 3 reb, 12 pts
45-Vincent Cofield, C – 2/2 fg, 2/2 ft, 1 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl, 6 pts
30-Jihad Wilson, F – 0 pts
team rebounds: 2
Totals: 34/58 fg (.586), 15/27 ft (.556), 38 reb, 27 ast, 3 blk, 9 stl, 91 pts
3-pt fg (8): Rivers 3, Isom 2, Strong 2, Eatmon
Tech Foul: Asst Coach Enman
Fouled Out: Miller 1:12 left
Turnovers (21): Strong 4, Felix 4, Lim 3, Eatmon 2, Pegg 2, Rivers 2, Miller, Isom, Johnson, Cofield
Halftime Score: Glendale 39, LA Valley 37
Updated Records: LA Valley 14-12 (6-3 in WSC-S); Glendale 12-12 (4-5 WSC-S)
