Posted: Dec 10, 2022
Opening the week as the #1-ranked team in the state, the Cerritos College men's basketball team took on three other ranked teams at the Riverside City Tournament. The Falcons (7-3) were defeated in all three games, dropping decisions to the host Tigers (68-58), East Los Angeles College (82-67) and Saddleback College (69-59). Things don't get easier for Cerritos, as they prepare for the College of the Sequoias Tournament next week. The team will open with the host Giants, who are ranked #11 in the state.
Cerritos vs. Riverside City: Taking on the host Tigers, who entered the week ranked #8 in the state, the teams traded leads until the Falcons went up, 21-15 after a three-point play from freshman Gary Williams (Dominguez HS), followed by a tip-in bucket from freshman Taeo Thomas (Verbum Dei HS) with 10:31 remaining. Riverside City responded by going on a 13-0 run over the next 5:29, as the Falcons went 0-for-4 from the field with four turnovers. Trailing, 37-30 at intermission, a three-pointer from freshman Everett May (Los Alamitos HS) brought the team to within 43-38 with 15:44 left in the second half. A pair of Jonathan Salazar (St. John Bosco HS/New Mexico Military Institute CC) free throws ended a 6-3 run by the Tigers, while Salazar and Thomas each scored a bucket to make it a 49-47 RCC lead with 10:54 left on the clock. Once again, the Tigers went on a run and scored the next seven points, and after a Salazar jumper made it a 58-51 game, Cerritos went 0-for-5 from the field with one turnover and Riverside extended their lead to 62-51. The Falcons could not overcome that deficit and suffered their first loss of the season. As a team, Cerritos shot 37% from the field and were only 3-for-25 from three-point range. Salazar led the team with 13 points and 14 rebounds with May posting 10 points and four rebounds. Freshman Cameron McCoy (Taft HS) produced nine points, while sophomore Gorden Boykins (St. Anthony HS) added six points and five rebounds.
Cerritos vs. East Los Angeles: Looking for their first win over the #12-ranked Huskies since a 71-62 victory in 2018, the Falcons only lead, 4-2 early on. They hit several shooting slumps, which allowed the Huskies to score points in bunches. Over the next 4:55, Cerritos went 1-for-6 from the field with four turnovers, as East LA opened up a 17-7 advantage. The deficit was 16 points by halftime (46-30). Playing without starting point guard Jalen Shores (Lakewood HS), Cerritos struggled with 11 first half turnovers, while the Huskies connected on 50% of their shots. The Falcons could only get as close as 11 points in the second half and suffered their second straight setback. May, who connected on five three-pointers, led the team with 19 points and six rebounds, while Salazar finished with 14 points and five caroms. Williams came off the bench to produce 12 points and six rebounds, with Boykins dishing out four assists before fouling out.
Cerritos vs. Saddleback: In their third consecutive game against a ranked team, the Falcons dropped their third game of the tournament against the #13-ranked Bobcats, 69-59. Trailing 17-8 early on, Cerritos saw Saddleback continue to have a hot hand from three-point range. It was 26-14 before the Falcons started to close the gap and moved to within 31-25 after a Shores layup with 2:08 left in the first half. Starting the second half in a 35-29 deficit, Cerritos finally pulled ahead when Salazar drained a three-pointer with 15:59 for a 40-39 advantage. Limited to just five points over the next 7:40, they were still able to stay within five points (50-45). But every time they were in position to make another move to regain the lead, Saddleback hit a clutch shot to maintain the lead. The Bobcats didn't make a basket the final 4:07 of the game, but connected on their last 12 free throws to come away with the win. May (12 points), Salazar (10 points, six rebounds) and McCoy (10 points) scored in double-figures for the Falcons. Williams added eight points and six rebounds off the bench.
