PG Andre Winn had 23 pts and three other players scored in double figures as Cypress won its home opener, holding off a late charge from West LA, 86-84, Wednesday night.
It was a game full of offense - the teams combined for 25 3-pointers and 170 points - but in the end it was Cypress defense in the form of blocked shots by Ctr Kourtney Maxim and SF Julius Von Hanzlik in the final seconds that allowed the Chargers to hold on for the win.
Cypress (1-0) saw a 15-point second-half lead dwindle to just two points after PG Andrew Aguilar hit West LA's 15th 3-pointer of the night to make it 86-84 with 44.6 seconds left. And the Wildcats got the ball back on a steal by SF Savion Udeh with 19.6 seconds left, giving them the chance to get the win.
But in the final sequence, the Cypress defense stepped up and held onto the slim lead. West LA got the ball inside, but Maxim blocked a shot in the lane. The rebound went out to Udeh behind the 3-point line, but Von Hanzlik blocked his would-be game-winning shot just ahead of the final buzzer.
For much of the night, it didn't look like Cypress would need any such late-game heroics. The Chargers took several 10-point leads in the first half, started the second half with a 6-0 spurt to push the margin to 14, and saw the lead grow to 15 points at 62-47 after a Von Hanzlik 3-pointer midway through the second half.
But West LA (0-4) shot its way back into the game. Two 3-pointers by SG Brandon Morris and one by Udeh made it 62-56. A putback basket by PF T'Anthony Redman made it a 4-point game at 71-67 with just over six minutes left.
A Von Hanzlik 3-pointer at the end of the shot clock that made it 86-78 with 1:31 left seemed to clinch the win for Cypress. But Morris hit another three to make it 86-81 with 1:15 left, and Winn was called for a charging foul, turning the ball back to West LA with 57.7 seconds to go. Then came Aguilar's 3-pointer to make it 86-84. But those would be West LA's final points, thanks to the two blocked shots in the final seconds.
For Cypress, Winn was 8-for-12 from the floor for a team-high 23 pts (3 threes) plus 6 rebs, 3 asts and 2 steals. Von Hanzlik had 16 pts, 3 rebs, 2 asts, 3 blocks and a steal. SG Malcolm Whittington had 11 pts and PF Chris Maheras had 10 pts on 4-for-4 from the floor. Maxim had 7 pts and a game-high 11 rebs.
For West LA, Blackmon led the way with 25 pts, 8 asts and 3 steals. Morris had a huge game off the bench with 21 pts (5 threes), 6 rebs, 5 asts, 2 blocks and 2 steals. Udeh, who staked West LA to an early 10-7 lead with 3 threes, finished with 18 pts on 6 3-pointers plus 7 rebs, 2 asts, 3 steals and a blocked shot. Overall, West LA connected on 15 3-pointers - half of their field goals - in the game.
box score
Wednesday, November 16, 2011 - 5 pm
at Cypress College
West LA Wildcats 84:
2-Anthony Hodge, SG - 1/6 fg, 1 reb, 1 ast, 3 pf, 2 pts
5-Savion Udeh, SF - 6/14 fg, 7 reb, 2 ast, 1 blk, 3 stl, 18 pts
21-Derrick Battle, C - 0/2 fg, 1 reb, 2 pf, 0 pts
22-T'Anthony Redman, PF - 3/9 fg, 9 reb, 2 blk, 2 pf, 6 pts
1-Brandon Morris, G - 8/14 fg, 6 reb, 5 ast, 2 blk, 2 stl, 2 pf, 21 pts
3-Andrew Aguilar, G - 3/5 fg, 2/4 ft, 1 ast, 4 stl, 9 pts
31-Aaron Bates, C - 1/3 fg, 1/2 ft, 5 reb, 3 pf, 3 pts
34-Harrison Augustine, C - 1 blk, 2 pf, 0 pts
35-Earl Schexnayder, G - 0/1 fg, 1 ast, 0 pts
team rebounds: 7
Totals: 30/75 fg (.400), 9/15 ft (.600), 38 reb, 18 ast, 6 blk, 12 stl, 16 pf, 84 pts
3-pt fg (15): Udeh 6, Morris 5, Blackmon 3, Aguilar
Turnovers (20): Blackmon 8, Hodge 5, Battle 2, Redman 2, Aguilar, Bates, Augustine
Cypress Chargers 86:
3-Andre Winn, PG - 8/12 fg, 4/6 ft, 6 reb, 3 ast, 2 stl, 4 pf, 23 pts
20-Malcolm Whittington, SG - 5/9 fg, 2 reb, 3 ast, 2 stl, 2 pf, 11 pts
24-Chris Maheras, PF - 4/4 fg, 4 reb, 1 blk, 1 stl, 10 pts
33-Julius Von Hanzlik, SF - 6/16 fg, 3 reb, 2 ast, 3 blk, 1 stl, 1 pf, 16 pts
45-Kourtney Maxim, C - 3/11 fg, 1/4 ft, 11 reb, 3 ast, 1 blk, 1 stl, 2 pf, 7 pts
10-Javon Taylor, G - 1/3 fg, 3 reb, 7 ast, 2 stl, 3 pf, 2 pts
32-Kieran O'Shaughnessy, G - 0/2 fg, 2 reb, 3 ast, 1 pf, 0 pts
15-Montel Taylor, F - 4/7 fg, 1/2 ft, 6 reb, 1 stl, 9 pts
44-Manny Sterling, C - 3/6 fg, 2/2 ft, 4 reb, 1 blk, 1 stl, 1 pf, 8 pts
21-Patrick Sterling, F - 1 stl, 0 pts
4-Jacob Nungaray, F - 1 pf, 0 pts
team rebounds: 6
Totals: 34/70 fg (.486), 8/14 ft (.571), 47 reb, 21 ast, 6 blk, 12 stl, 15 pf, 86 pts
3-pt fg (10): Von Hanzlik 4, Winn 3, Maheras 2, Whittington
Turnovers (27): Winn 7, J.Taylor 7, Whittington 6, M.Taylor 2, M.Sterling 2, Von Hanzlik, P. Sterling, Nungaray
Halftime Score: Cypress 44, West LA 38
Updated Records: Cypress 1-0, West LA 0-4
Cypress led by 15 at 62-47 midway through the 2nd half. West LA got it down to 2 and had the ball but Maxim and Von Hanzlik both blocked shots in the final seconds to preserve the win for Cypress.
