Cuesta took control with a 12-2 second-half run on Saturday night and went on to defeat SBCC 69-60 in a WSC North men’s basketball game at the Sports Pavilion.
The Vaqueros (4-11, 0-3) erased a 30-24 halftime deficit with a 16-8 burst to open the second half. Sean Keyes scored eight points in the first 2½ minutes and Thomas Walker hit back to back layups to give Santa Barbara its first lead, 40-38, with 14:54 to play. Benat Hevia, who scored 15 points, hit a 3-pointer to ignite the 12-2 run for the Cougars.
Hevia, a freshman guard from Spain, hit another triple to cap the run and boost the Cuesta lead to 50-42. SBCC got within four on a 3-pointer by Justin Holden a minute later but could get no closer.
The teams combined for 66 3-point attempts with Cuesta (13-7, 3-1) hitting 11-of-36 and the Vaqueros 7-30. Keyes was 4-15 from downtown and Holden hit 2-4. Neither team shot well from the field with the visitors making 37.3 percent and Santa Barbara 34.8 percent.
Keyes led SBCC with 19 points while Walker had 18 points (on 9-14 shooting) and eight rebounds. Tayler Thompson, a 6-9 sophomore, led the Cougars with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Evgeniy Moiseev had 15 rebounds, helping Cuesta win the battle of the boards 50-38.
“We played good defense and that was our main focus,” said SBCC coach Morris Hodges. “We were right there. They played zone the whole game and we had a lot of open looks but we couldn’t knock them down.
