Middleton Makes It Happen

Glendora, CA -- Citrus College freshman Darius Middleton, returned to the floor for the Owls in a big way on Saturday evening. After the Owls say a double-digit lead dwindle away for the umpteenth time this year, Middleton made things happen in the final minute, scoring a go ahead basket with 47 seconds to go and then the game winner with 13 seconds left to give Citrus a 72-71 win over visiting El Camino College.

As usual, the Owls started off fine, coming out of the gate with a 13-6 run that was punctuated by a three pointer from sophomore Kerry Carter. El Camino battled back, taking their first lead with 13:08 left in the first half at 14-13 and then pushing it to four points at 17-13 with 11:38 to go.

Citrus quickly turned momentum back in their favor, getting three straight points from sophomore Vinny Meller, and then what could possibly be the dunk of the year when Carter took a pass from sophomore Jordan Mackie on a fast break and then dunked violently on the El Camino defender to put Citrus back on top 18-17.

From there, Citrus kept their momentum on track, going up by as much as 13 points, when Carter drilled another trey with 1:40 to go and the score now 37-24. El Camino would close the half on a small 5-2 run, but the Owls still led by 10 at the half 39-29.

Citrus would keep their lead at around seven points for the first six and a half minutes of the second half, but that's when the Warriors began to make their move. El Camino whittled away at the Owls lead until they took it back for themselves with 8:17 to go in the game.

The Owls would briefly regain it with 4:54 to go after big three from Mackie, but the Warriors took it right back on their next possession and held on to it until the final minute of the contest. That's when Middleton went to work. With just over 50 seconds to go, Middleton drove to into the paint stepped back and let a floater fly through the hoop to give Citrus a 70-69 lead.

On the very next possession, El Camino came right back down and scored going back on top 71-70 with 22 seconds to go. After a timeout, the Owls again went to Middleton, who practically did the exact same thing. This time veering a little further left, but again drilled a floater to put Citrus back in the lead 72-71. That's where the score would stay as the Owls thwarted El Camino in their final possession, exacting a little revenge on the Warriors for the earlier loss they handed Citrus.

In the win, Citrus was led by Carter who finished with a game high 22 points. Mackie added a season high 16 off the bench, while Middleton scored eight. Carter also handed out a game high four assists, while sophomore Gregory Sequele grabbed a game high 12 boards.

With the win, Citrus improves to 6-6 on the year. The Owls will be back out on the floor of the Owls' Nest next Saturday when they host State #6 Ventura College. Tip-off is set for 5:00 PM.