It is a long held belief - almost cliche - that it is difficult for a team to beat another three times in one season.
Saturday night, the San Bernardino Valley College men's basketball team put that cliche to the test. The Wolverines headed to Cerro Coso - a team they beat twice in Inland Empire Athletic Conference play - for a CCCAA Southern California Regional Final game with a trip to the State Championship round next weekend at Mt. San Antonio College on the line.
And true to the saying, it was the host Coyotes who found a way to win the third meeting between the two teams, as Cerro Coso held on for a 69-67 victory.
SBVC started the game strong, opening a 9-0 lead in the first 3:19 of the game. The Wolverines opened a 13-point lead 8:05 to go in the first half. But Cerro Coso closed the gap as the half wound down, as the Coyotes scored the last five points over the last 1:08 to make it a 37-35 SBVC lead at the break.
The Wolverines again started the second half well, with Jason Lee stealing the in-bound pass to start the half, leading to a Duwan Franklin layup, as SBVC went on a 7-0 run in the opening 2:16 to regain a nine-point advantage. After a Cerro Coso timeout, the Coyotes went on an 8-0 run of their own, with Malachi Greenwich coming off the bench and making back-to-back 3-pointers.
Greenwich turned out to have the hot hand for the Coyotes, leading Cerro Coso to the lead in the second half on 6-of-7 shooting from the field, including 4-of-4 from beyond the arc, as he finished with a game-high 24 points. Cerro Coso opened its largest lead - a nine-point advantage - with 8:38 to go.
But SBVC rallied back, tying the game on a Franklin layup with 2:21 to go. Franklin was unable to complete a three-point play, missing the ensuing free throw, leaving the game tied. SBVC had another chance to take the lead back with 24 seconds to go, but Michael Miller missed two free throws, forcing the Wolverines to foul. But Cerro Coso was also having troubles at the free throw line, with SBVC getting two more shots to take the lead or tie, but they were unable to score, ending the game.
Four SBVC players finished in double figures scoring, with Miller leading the way with 20 points. Lee had 16 points to go with 15 assists, while Sylis Gray had 12 and Franklin finished with 10. Chine Nwanevu finished with 9 points and 12 rebounds.
Trent Gordon was the only other member of the Coyotes to finish in double figures, with 15 points. Cerro Coso held an advantage shooting from the field, converting 55.6 percent of their shot attempts, while SBVC only shot 37.9 percent from the field.
