Owls Celebrate Sophomore Night with Another Conference Title

No. 6-ranked Citrus College grabbed its fifth conference championship in six seasons after grinding out a 78-76 victory over Antelope Valley College Wednesday night.

The Owls improve to 24-3 on the year and 12-1 in the Western State Conference-South to win the conference title outright. The Marauders drop to 12-15 overall and 6-7 in conference.

Chris Chiles led the Owls with 21 points on the night, shooting 5-for-9 from the floor and 9-for-11 from the charity stripe. Ty Barlow followed with 14 points on 5-of-10 shooting, including a 4-for-7 performance from beyond the arc. Anthony Tello rounded out the Owls in double figures with 10 points, while Aibigho Ujadughele was two points away from a double-double with eight points and 10 rebounds.

The battle saw six ties and seven lead changes, including four lead changes in the final five minutes of the game.

AVC grabbed a big layup with just under two minutes to play to take the lead before both teams got stopped on defense.

With 30 seconds left on the clock, Ujadughele came up big off the glass, tipping in a missed shot to put the Owls back in front and force a Marauder timeout.

The visitors tried to wind down the clock but turned the ball over with just under nine seconds on the clock. Chiles was sent to the free throw line and missed but made the second to put the Owls in front by just one possession.

AVC ran the length of the court and got a look off with one second left, but Ujadughele snatched the loose ball to secure the 78-76 victory for the Owls.

Citrus closes the regular season on Friday at West LA for a 7 p.m. game time.