Strong first half propels Pirates past Dons, 91-77
OCC's Jydon Hall had 28 points and seven assists to lead the Orange Coast College men's basketball team to a 91-77 Orange Empire Conference win over host Santa Ana College on Wednesday night.
SANTA ANA -- Jydon Hall had 28 points and seven assists to lead the Orange Coast College men's basketball team to a 91-77 Orange Empire Conference win over host Santa Ana College on Wednesday night.
Logen Howard added 19 points and six assists for the Pirates (12-7, 4-3 in the OEC), while Sam Hunter added 12 points. Off the bench, Aryan Talle had nine points and four assists, while Kyndle Terrell-Jones added eight points and dished out four assists.
For the Dons (7-12, 3-4), Kelvonte Ellis had a game-high 26 points and 13 rebounds, while Kody Uyesugi added 19 points and Zeyu Shan tossed in 17 points. The rest of the Dons combined for just 15 points on 5-of-14 shooting.
Coast was lights out in the first half, hitting 20-of-39 shots (51.3%), including 12-of-22 from 3-point range (54.5%), helping the Pirates push ahead of the Dons, 56-35, at the break. A 30-9 run early in the first half turned an 11-8 advantage into a 41-17 runaway and OCC never looked back from there.
The Pirate defense left its mark once again, forcing 26 SAC turnovers, which led to a 27-19 scoring advantage off of turnovers. Plus, the OCC bench contributed mightily with 28 points, while the Dons' bench was held to just five points. OCC finished with 18 made 3-pointers and held a 54-15 scoring advantage over Santa Ana from beyond the arc.
OCC will play at Santiago Canyon on Friday (6 p.m.) before returning to the Peterson Gym on Monday against Irvine Valley (6 p.m.) (TICKETS)
Release by Tony Alotbelli, OCC SID