Owls Hand Tigers First Loss

No. 13-ranked Citrus College had to dig deep for another tough battle, defeating No. 9-ranked Riverside City College 76-74 in overtime.

The Owls remain undefeated at 3-0 while handing the Tigers their first loss of the young year (3-1).

Leonard Turner led the Owls with another double-double, posting 22 points on 8-of-16 shooting and grabbing 15 rebounds. Cedric Reed followed with 16 points (5-for-11), while Jayden Johnston contributed 13 points (5-for-12).

RCC held a 35-21 lead at halftime, but the Owls clawed their way back into the game and forced overtime after Chris Chiles found Reed on the perimeter with 30 seconds left on the clock. Reed drained the three-pointer, forcing the Tigers to call a timeout with the score even at 66-66.

RCC drew up a play and got to the rim, but the shot didn't fall to send the game into overtime.

In the extra period, RCC held a two-point lead with two minutes left in the period, but Turner posted up to tie the game and Hayden Dykstra came up big on defense with a block, leading to another Turner basket, 74-72.

The Tigers responded back to tie the game and Citrus called a timeout. Dykstra drew a foul and made both his chances at the charity stripe to put his team back in front. Dykstra came up big again on the other end of the court, blocking a Tiger attempt to secure the win for the Owls.

Citrus looks to keep rolling and heads to LA Harbor on Wednesday at 5:00 p.m.