File Photo: Darron Henry scored a combined 41 points in two Falcon wins at the Citrus Tournament
Posted: Dec 07, 2024
Returning to the court after nine days off, the Cerritos College men's basketball team found themselves in another tight situation in their first game at the Citrus Tournament. The Falcons, who were facing Santa Monica College, came away with a hard-fought 85-83 win on Friday. They followed that with a 83-74 win over Cerro Coso on Saturday. Cerritos returns home on Wednesday for a 5:00 p.m. Game against Los Angeles Trade-Tech.
Cerritos vs. Santa Monica: Clinging to an 82-79 lead after sophomore Spencer Ezewiro (Paramount HS/Moberly Area, MO CC) slammed home a shot, the Falcons saw the Corsairs (5-6) score the game's next four points to grab an 83-82 lead with 42 seconds remaining. The team had a chance to hold the lead, but missed the front end of a one-and-one on their previous possession. After a pair of timeouts, sophomore Darron Henry (Long Beach Poly HS) knocked down a running jumper from six feet out to put Cerritos back in front, 84-83 with 21 seconds left. Santa Monica's David Solomon saw his driving lay-up cling off the rim, with sophomore Jordun Willard (Paramount HS) pulling down the rebound. Henry was then fouled again, and he converted the second of two free throws to lead, 85-83. The Corsairs got off a shot at the buzzer, but it was offline.
Sophomore Andrew Mata (Schurr HS/Holy Cross, IN College) led the Falcons with 23 points, which included a season-high seven three-pointers, with six of them coming in the second half. After giving up a 12-point lead in the second half, the team trailed by seven points (64-57) with 11:11 remaining. Enter Mata, who hit two quick treys, with sophomore Blake Brewer (Orange Lutheran HS) adding six points. A Mata three-pointer with 7:37 put Cerritos back in front (72-71) and then added two more in less than a minute for a three-point lead.
Henry ended the game with 17 points, 12 assists and eight steals in his best all-round effort as a Falcon, while Brewer contributed 11 points in the win. Ezewiro finished with 10 points and seven rebounds.
Sophomore Andrew Mata (Schurr HS/Holy Cross, IN College) led the Falcons with 23 points, which included a season-high seven three-pointers, with six of them coming in the second half. After giving up a 12-point lead in the second half, the team trailed by seven points (64-57) with 11:11 remaining. Enter Mata, who hit two quick treys, with sophomore Blake Brewer (Orange Lutheran HS) adding six points. A Mata three-pointer with 7:37 put Cerritos back in front (72-71) and then added two more in less than a minute for a three-point lead.
Henry ended the game with 17 points, 12 assists and eight steals in his best all-round effort as a Falcon, while Brewer contributed 11 points in the win. Ezewiro finished with 10 points and seven rebounds.
Cerritos vs. Cerro Coso: Facing the Coyotes for the first time in the program's history, the Falcons opened the game by scoring the first 11 points, with freshman Lucas Smith (Blaine, WA HS) and Mata netting three-pointers. However, Cerro Coso was able to close to within 20-15 midway through the first half until freshman Elijah Andrews (Wellington, FL HS) scored the game's next five points to swell the lead back to 10 points. The biggest lead of the half (31-16) ended up being a 34-26 advantage at intermission. In the second half, the Coyotes got to within 47-45 with 12:45 remaining before buckets from Henry and sophomore Dillon Botts (Mayfair HS) made it a six-point lead.
With 6:38 remaining, the game was tied at 60-60 until the Falcons went on a 12-6 run, thanks in part to a three-point play from Henry. Another jumper from Henry, followed by a pair of free throws from Botts put Cerritos in front, 76-66 with 1:02 left. Down the stretch, Cerritos converted 9-of-10 free throws to secure the victory.
With 6:38 remaining, the game was tied at 60-60 until the Falcons went on a 12-6 run, thanks in part to a three-point play from Henry. Another jumper from Henry, followed by a pair of free throws from Botts put Cerritos in front, 76-66 with 1:02 left. Down the stretch, Cerritos converted 9-of-10 free throws to secure the victory.
Henry made 9-of-10 field goals to lead the team with 24 points and dished out six assists, while Ezewiro added 15 points, 14 rebounds and three blocked shots before fouling out. Botts produced 10 points, six rebounds and six assists off the bench, while Mata scored all nine of his points on three-pointers.