In what many believe to be the battle for the South Coast Conference South Division title, the Cerritos College men's basketball team took an inside track with their 70-63 win over Los Angeles Harbor College on Friday at The Aviary. The Falcons (13-9, 1-0) will now travel to Los Angeles Southwest College for a 5:00 p.m. divisional game on Wednesday.

In the win over the Seahawks (11-11, 1-1), the team found themselves down by seven points (30-23) in the first half, but responded with a late run to get to within three points by intermission. Sophomore Kyle Geer (Bassick, CT HS/Cuesta College) scored five of the team's final 10 points in the first half, and it was his bucket early in the second half that gave the team a 37-36 lead.

After LA Harbor regained the lead, freshman Luis Medearis (View Park HS) drained a three-pointer with 11:56 left on the clock for a 44-42 advantage. The Falcons were able to grab rebounds and turn them into instant points. First, Geer hit a bucket, followed by an offensive rebound and put-back by freshman Elvis Okafor (International School of Lagos, Nigeria HS) for a 51-45 lead with 10:30 remaining. Medearis followed with another three-pointer for a 54-47 lead, while the lead swelled to as many as 10 points (61-51) with 4:12 left after a Geer bucket.

But the Seahawks started to slowly work their way back to within striking distance in the final minutes of the game. Dharion Tanner scored six straight points and Duchone Brown followed with a three-pointer with 3:00 left, which put the score at 63-56. A Duchone Brown basket with 1:33 left trimmed the Falcons lead to 65-61. Sophomore Jonathan Brown (Fairfax HS) converted two of four free throws and Geer slammed home a breakaway basket to seal the win.

Geer finished the night with 17 points, 14 rebounds and four steals, while Medearis added 15 points and three rebounds for the Falcons. Brown came off the bench to contribute nine points, while freshman Brian Nebo (St. John Bosco HS) posted eight points, seven rebounds and four assists. The Falcons out-rebounded LA Harbor, 53-40, but continued to struggle from the free throw line, making only 140of034.

Photos by Daryl Peterson