Pirates come up short to Dons, 76-63
| Final | 1 | 2 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Santa Ana (8-11, 2-5) | 34 | 42 | 76 |
|
Orange Coast (9-10, 3-4) | 28 | 35 | 63 |
COSTA MESA -- The baskets struggled to fall for the Orange Coast College men's basketball team as the Pirates fell to visiting Santa Ana College, 76-63, on Friday night inside the Peterson Gym.
Cody Aquino led Coast (9-10, 3-4 in the Orange Empire Conference) with 16 points, while Isaac Padilla (11 points, Mitchell Rawlins (11 points, eight rebounds) and Keon Young (10 points) each found double digits. But the rest of the squad combined for just 3-of-19 shooting (15.7 percent), leaving the Pirates on the short end of the scoreboard.
For the Dons (8-11, 2-5), Kaden Minter led the way with 22 points, while Mac West added 20 points and eight rebounds.
It was an aggressive game from the opening whistle, with both teams battling for every possession. With three minutes left in the first half, the Pirates and Dons were tied at 27, but it was the Dons who used a late second-half surge to grab a 34-28 lead into halftime.
Midway through the second half, the Pirates capped off a 20-12 run with a Young jumper that put OCC ahead, 48-46.
Coast led 51-50 with 8:33 remaining after a made trey from Isaiah Lee, but from there, the Pirates went cold as the Dons used a 20-5 run over the next six minutes to pull away and grab control of the contest, 70-56. The Dons were able to close out the game and pick up the road win.
The Pirates will return to action on Wednesday at home against Santiago Canyon, beginning at 6 p.m.
