SBCC was downright offensive on Wednesday night with 25 of its 50 rebounds coming at the offensive end in a 66-56 men’s basketball victory over L.A. Pierce at the Sports Pavilion.
Richard Somdah scored 18 points with nine rebounds (six offensive) and Tony Hawley collected 10 of his 14 points in the second half for the Vaqueros (5-12, 1-1) , who hit 15-of-20 free throws in the second half to post their first WSC North victory.
Hawley, a 6-4 freshman from Dos Pueblos High, had a season-best 14 rebounds, including eight on offense.
“We talked about playing strong,” said Somdah, a 6-3 sophomore from Houston, Texas. “We know we’re an undersized team but we have heart.”
Somdah had 12 points and six rebounds in the first half and SBCC led 36-31 after finishing with a 14-3 spurt. The Vaqueros scored the first nine of the first 11 in the second half to push the lead to 12 at 40-28. The Brahmas (4-12, 1-2) responded with a 14-3 burst and pulled within one at 43-42.
SBCC regained control with a 7-0 run, capped by a fast-break slam by Chris Vines with 8:32 to play. Pierce didn’t get closer than six the rest of the way.
Steven Saenz added nine points and Vines had eight points, seven rebounds and two steals.
Santa Barbara outrebounded the visitors from Woodland Hills 50-31.
“We felt the key was going to be who won the rebounding game,” said coach Morris Hodges. “We wanted to be really aggressive and physical on the boards and I thought our guys stepped up to that challenge.
“Our run at the end of the first half and start of the second was fueled by some good defensive intensity. We created turnovers and then converted the baskets. Tony did a nice job on the boards and took a couple of charges that gave us an emotional lift.”
SBCC will host Ventura on Saturday at 7 p.m.
