Second-half surge lifts Pirates past Seahawks, 79-61
COSTA MESA -- The Orange Coast College men's basketball team made the most of its nonconference home cooking on Friday night en route to a 79-61 win over visiting L.A. Harbor College.
Playing in their lone pre-conference home contest of the season, the Pirates (1-2) overcame a strong second-half opening by the Seahawks (0-3) and broke free down the stretch.
After leading 33-30 at the half, the Pirates quickly found themselves down by five within the first five minutes of the second half, led by the strong play of LAHC's Tony Bell (13 points), Kenneth Greene (12 points) and Keith Mason (12 points).
But the hot long-range shooting of Jo Jo Trinidad helped put Coast back in the lead for good. The sophomore guard hit four 3-pointers down the stretch and the Pirates never looked back.
Marquis Ransom led Coast with 19 points, while Trinidad finished with 12 and Chris Nelson chipped in 11 (four assists) and Matt Nuthall tossed in 10.
With 18 players available for head coach Steve Spencer, the Pirates were relentless on the defensive end, pressuring the Seahawks throughout the game. In the end, LAHC turned the ball over 28 times with Spencer Poston leading the way with four steals.
The Pirates will now take to the road for the next several weeks before finally returning to the Peterson Gym on Friday, Jan. 4 against Riverside City College at 7:30 p.m.
