Santiago Canyon Scores Big in Second Half to get Playoff Victory

The Santiago Canyon Hawks used a big offensive effort in the second half to come from behind and secure a victory in the second round of the state playoffs.  SCC, seeded #1 in the CCCAA Southern Regional Playoffs, came away with a 107-99 win over #14 West Los Angeles College.  The Hawks earned a first round bye, while West LA defeated Mt. San Jacinto on Wednesday night to set up the matchup.  SCC came out strong early in the game, but West LA matched the Hawks scoring efforts. West LA took advantage of a few uncharacteristic turnovers to grab a 9-point lead with 11:48 left in the half.  SCC battled back and had the lead cut to 2 points, but West LA responded and kept the lead.  With a half-court bank shot to end the half, West LA went into the locker room up 44-37.  The Hawks shot poorly in the 1st half, connecting on only 3 three-pointers out of 14 attempts. Antoine Jenkins led the Hawks with 12 points on 2 for 4 shooting from distance. Lucas Holden ended the half with 7 points and Tyler Goodlow chipped in with 5 points.

Santiago Canyon jumped out strong in the 2nd half with a 12-2 run to take the lead and would never relinquish it.  West LA battled and kept the game close throughout, but SCC was able to maintain momentum on the offensive end to secure the win.  The Hawks scored 70 points in the half, including 12 made three-pointers, with contributions from multiple players.  Jenkins scored 25 points in the half and ended the night with a game-high 37 points.  He connected on 8 threes in just 11 attempts, and was 14 for 22 overall.  Jenkins also dished out 9 assists. David Agba came up huge with 22 points and 9 rebounds, including a clutch 13 for 14 from the free throw line.  A.J. Garrity scored 14 points, with 11 of those being in the second half. Holden finished with 13 points on 4 for 6 shooting.  Paulo Araujo chipped in with 9 points and 5 rebounds off the bench. The Hawks biggest lead of the game was 15 with 3:22 left in the game. SCC's 70 second half points were the second most in a half in school history. In the 2017-18 season, SCC scored 72 points in the 2nd half of a game vs. El Camino.

Santiago Canyon advances to the CCCAA Regional Finals to take on Cerritos College. The Hawks will be at home with the game being played on Saturday, March 7th at 7:00pm.