GAME INTRO: Santa Barbara hopes to hand Ventura its first Channel League loss since the 2009-10 season tonight. The Dons are 2-1 in league after a 41-40 loss to Dos Pueblos in their last game while Ventura is 3-0 and 12-4 overall.
END OF FOURTH QUARTER: Ventura takes care of Santa Barbara 56-31. The two teams played even in the first quarter but the Cougars took off after that. Ventura’s Nick Rudolph leads all scorers with 19 points.
END OF THIRD QUARTER: Ventura led by as many as 19 points near the end of the period before settling on a 43-25 advantage to start the final quarter. The Cougars only scored 11 points in the period but the Dons managed even less, netting five points. After matching the Cougars with 12 points in the first period, the Dons have totaled 13 points since.
2:58 REMAINING IN THIRD QUARTER: Ventura has been able to build on its lead slightly. The Cougars are working deep into the shot clock on pretty much every possession. On defense, Ventura’s man defense isn’t giving the Dons any room to get off an easy looks. Santa Barbara has scored just once this quarter as a result. Cougars lead 38-22.
HALFTIME: Sam Cohen gave the Dons an 18-16 lead early on in the second quarter. After that, Ventura took off on a 14-0 run and took control of the game with a 30-18 lead. A layup from Teon West broke the Dons’ dry spell but the hosts still head to the locker room trailing 32-20.
3:12 REMAINING IN FIRST HALF: The Dons took a couple of leads early in the quarter but the Cougars have built their largest lead at 23-18 on a pair of free throws. Andy Busch picked up his third foul for Santa Barbara.
END OF FIRST QUARTER: The game, which began 30 minutes late, is knotted at 12-12.
