The Hornets continued to stay hot against the Los Angeles Southwest College, as they beat the Cougars by 50 points in a 102-52 outcome.
“I thought we defended better, still a few mistakes in the first half but a lot better in the second,” said Fullerton head coach Perry Webster. The Cougars came into this game as one of the highest scoring teams in the state, averaging over 90 points per game. Despite their scoring prowess, LA Southwest held a record of 2-8.
Freshman forward Jaqari Miles continued to show that he’s a problem coming off the bench, finishing with 16 points on the night. Another talent off of the bench was sophomore forward Shawn Woodson, as he was able to reach 12 points. Two more Hornets hit the double digit mark in points scored, freshman guard Kairi Shepherd and sophomore forward Addy G’Bye with 10 and 12 a piece.
Sophomore guards Kenneth Tyree and Hansen Clarke led the Cougars to a 15-15 tie, making the game interesting early on in the first half. The Hornets would have two big runs however to shake things up and take control of the game. One of them being an 18-6 run toward the end of the first half started by a 3-pointer made by Miles. This run would become a statement in the game, really turning things up and forcing the Cougars to work extra hard to play catch up.
When halftime came about, both teams left the court for their locker rooms and 10 Fullerton College students came out to be recognized for their achievements in the classroom this semester. Students: Danielle Narmi, Ethan Charpentier, Shawn Takhar, Ashley Chang, Cindy Liang, Daniel Duarte, Suzy Eddleman, Brent Larson, Soobin Cho and Logan Williams were presented awards from Fullerton College President Cynthia Olivo and Cheer Advisor Vicki Calhoun.
At the start of the second half, the Hornets continued their momentum from the first and went on another run to raise the score to 62-37. There was really no answer for the Hornets offense all night, and they displayed this with great communication, ball movement and overall chemistry. They would go on to drop 40 more points in the last few minutes to break 100 as the game concluded. The players really seemed to gravitate towards sophomore guard Justin Davis who was in the center of all the plays. Davis was either setting up a score, scoring himself or playing intense defense, but his leadership is what was very noticeable. He was the first one to congratulate his fellow teammates on good plays or to pick someone up off of the court whether they were a Hornet or a Cougar.
“Justin has put in the work since he’s gotten here, he grey shirted his freshman year and was a key guy for us last year, he’s a captain this year,” said Webster. “He’s just one my favorite guys I’ve ever coached in terms of who he is as a teammate and how much effort he gives daily.”
Fullerton will play Modesto Community College at home Friday, Dec. 13, in the 38th Annual Fullerton College Classic.