Big Runs and a Close Loss

Glendora, CA -- When the Citrus College Men's Basketball team opened up Western State Conference South Division play on Wednesday evening to State #16 Bakersfield College, the Owls knew they would have a tall task on their hands. What they didn't know probably was all the big runs they'd see on the night as the Owls lost a close on 80-86.

The game started out with one of those aforementioned big runs, but it wasn't in favor of the Owls. Bakersfield opened the game scoring the contests' first 10 points, and led 20-9 before Citrus could even blink.

To their credit, Citrus didn't roll over and instead put together a run of their own, using a 12-0 spurt started by a jumper from sophomore Ryan Wiley and book ended by a tip-in by freshman Calvin Martin off a missed shot to pull within three at 26-23. In what would become a recurring theme though, Bakersfield had an answer, as the Renegades used the final seven minutes of the first half to slowly build their lead back up, taking an 11 point advantage into the break, up 44-33.

In the second half, Citrus would make a few runs to try to take a lead against the Renegades. The first would right around the midway point, when a three pointer by sophomore Jeriko Santos and four straight points by sophomore Mark Williams made it 56-57 with 11:15 to go. From that point forward it was a back and forth affair with Bakersfield continuing to cling to their lead.

Bakersfield would eventually go back up by with just over six minutes to go, leading to Citrus' last charge. Freshman Kenneth Cyprian would play a prominent role in the Owls' near comeback scoring 11 of Citrus' last 13 points including a pair of free-throws that would pull Citrus to within one, a three pointer that would again get Citrus back to within a single score, and another triple that tied the game up with 2:49 to go. Unfortunately, Citrus stumbled offensively down the stretch, as Bakersfield pulled out the six point win.

In the loss, Cyprian scored a team high 21 points. Williams was the only other Owl in double figures with 16 points, adding a game high 12 boards, three assist, three steals, and a pair of blocks to go with it.

With the loss, Citrus drops to 6-8 overall and 0-1 in WSC South play. The Owls' road doesn't get any easier as they travel to State #9 Antelope Valley College (15-1, 1-0) on Saturday. Tip-off is set for 7:00 PM.