Early on a new season, you expect some challenges. Teams are still trying to figure out how to play together against an opponent.
Friday night, the San Bernardino Valley College men's basketball team was still working out some of the kinks against Saddleback College in an opening round game of the Alvin Hunter Classic. And while it wasn't perfect at times, the Wolverines walked out of the SBVC Athletics Complex with a 76-52 win over the Bobcats.
Both teams struggled out of the gate, as neither team was able to get a solid flow going in their offense. But San Bernardino scored the final five points of the half, with Brandon Thompson banking in a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give SBVC a 30-24 lead at the half.
Saddleback opened the second half on a 9-0 run to take a 33-30 lead less than four minutes into the half. And that woke up the Wolverines. Mubarek Michael started finding his touch from three-point range and helped spark a 15-4 SBVC run later in the half to open up the lead near the end of the game.
Michael and Dominque Daniel lead the way for the Wolverines, scoring 15 points apiece. Chester Makoi added nine points with seven rebounds, while Brandon Thompson added nine more points in the win.
Saddleback's Atiba Taylor was the game's leading scorer, pouring in 17 points. Gerald Jones III added 14 and Nick Bowden had 11 for the Bobcats.