Former Carpinteria High basketball star Jacob Ranger returned to the area and scored 17 points to help the No. 7-ranked Cal State San Marcos Cougars rout No. 6 Westmont 95-58 in a nonconference game at Murchison Gym on Thursday.
The game remained close in the first half until after the eight-minute mark. With the score tied at 25, the Cougars exploded for a 16-1 run over a five minute span. Cal State San Marcos was seven of 13 from beyond the arc in the opening frame and shot 51.4 percent from the field to the Warriors’ 37.8 percent.
The Cougars continued their hot hand from long distance in the second half, making another six three-pointers on nine attempts. San Marcos’ field goal shooting percentage increased to 69.0 percent (20 of 29) in the second half, equating to 59.4 percent for the game. Westmont finished the game at 38.5 percent shooting from the floor (25 of 65) and just 7.1 percent (1 of 14) from three-point range.
Even the free-throw line wasn’t kind to the Warriors on Thursday night. Westmont made just seven of 19 attempts (36.8%).
The Cougars had five shooters in double figures, led by Quincy Lawson with 18. No Warriors scored more than nine points.
Westmont (22-5) returns to Golden State Athletic Conference on Saturday, hosting No. 25 Arizona Christian (17-6, 7-4 GSAC). With a win Westmont, which is 10-1 in conference, can claim its first GSAC regular season championship since 1992.
