Pirates split pair at COC Tournament
| Final | 1 | 2 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Orange Coast (10-4) | 34 | 59 | 93 |
|
Canyons (9-5) | 52 | 49 | 101 |
SANTA CLARITA -- The Orange Coast College men's basketball capped off the 2022 calendar year with a pair of games at the College of the Canyons Cougar Holiday Classic, with OCC topping L.A. Trade Tech (95-68) on Wednesday before falling to the host Cougars (101-93) on Thursday.
In the opener against LATTC (2-13), the Pirates (10-4) picked up 20-point efforts from sophomores Logen Howard and Jydon Hall, while Sam Hunter added 15 points, seven rebounds, five steals and four assists. Coast's defense turned things up against a shorthanded L.A. Trade Tech squad, forcing 26 turnovers with the help of 21 steals.
Coast had 29 points off of the bench with several players scoring, while reserve Trent Williams led the way with seven points.
Against the Cougars, OCC jumped out to a strong start and led 23-14 just eight minutes into the contest, but COC responded with a 38-11 run the rest of the way and led 52-34 at the break.
Coast regrouped and chipped away at the Canyons' lead and got to within four (92-88) with just 2 minutes left in the game. But the Cougars made some key baskets down the stretch and stopped the Pirates comeback over the final minutes to preserve the win.
Hall was the catalyst for the second-half comeback, scoring a game-high 28 points to go along with four assists and five steals, while Howard added 18 points. Off the bench, Jaided Greene tossed in 12 points in 15 minutes of action, while Kyndle Terrell-Jones added 10 points.
Coast will return to Orange Empire Conference action on Wednesday at Riverside City College, beginning at 5 p.m. OCC's next home game will be on Monday against Fullerton, beginning at 6 p.m. (TICKETS).
