With sole possession of first place in the South Coast Conference South Division on the line, the Cerritos College men's basketball team was able to pull away from visiting Los Angeles Harbor College on Friday night. The Falcons (13-9, 4-0), who have now won six games in a row, pulled away in the final 10 minutes for an 80-71 victory. The team will travel to rival Long Beach City College next Wednesday for a 5:00 p.m. divisional game.

Leading 47-40 in the second half, the Falcons were able to extend that advantage to a game-high 17 points (59-42) after a 12-2 run. The Seahawks (8-14, 3-1) went on a 6-0 run before sophomore Eric Clark (Cerritos HS) converted a layup. LA Harbor was able to get as close as 67-60 with 3:08 remaining, but a three-point play from sophomore Miles Ceballos (Crossroads HS/Ventura College) put the Cerritos back to 10 points at 70-60. 

The Falcons were able to hold off LA Harbor in the second half by converting their first 13 free throws, while freshman Dillon Botts (Mayfair HS) knocked down four straight in the final minute to help secure the win.

On the night, Cerritos netted 23-of-26 free throws and made seven three-pointers, which included at least one by all five starters.

Henry led the team with 21 points and added three steals, while Ceballos checked in with 15 points, five points and three assists. As for sophomore Cameron McCoy (Taft HS), he finished with 11 points and seven rebounds off the bench, with sophomore Everett May (Los Alamitos HS) posting 10 points and three rebounds.

Photos by Daryl Peterson