Bears' threes drain Mesa men, 71-58
| Final | 1 | 2 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Phoenix College (19-4, 13-2) | 35 | 36 | 71 |
|
Mesa Community College (14-7, 11-4) | 26 | 32 | 58 |
Phoenix College
| Game Statistics | Phoenix College | Mesa Community College |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goals | (21-52) | (19-56) |
| Field Goal % | 40.4% | 33.9% |
| Rebounds | 30 | 44 |
| Assists | 15 | 7 |
| Turnovers | 10 | 20 |
| Pts off Turnovers | 22 | 5 |
| 2nd Chance Pts | 6 | 12 |
| Pts in the Paint | 14 | 24 |
| Fastbreak Pts | 6 | 4 |
| Bench Pts | 30 | 17 |
MESA, AZ - Hitting 11 of its first 16 three-point attempts, while Mesa was making just two of 11 tries, Phoenix (19-4, 13-2), the fourth-ranked team in NJCAA Division II, used the long ball to take a 71-58 win over the T-Birds in ACCAC action Saturday at The Heap Gym.
Despite the loss, MCC (14-7, 11-4) maintains its lead in Division I of the ACCAC having taken a two-game margin over Cochise into the contest.
The T-Birds slipped behind quickly, trailing 14-6 in the first ten minutes, but then went on a 14-0 roll capped by a free throw by Gianni Dailey (So., Phoenix, AZ/St. Mary's H.S.) to push MCC on top, 20-14.
Still leading, 25-20 with 4:12 left in the half, the Thunderbirds scored just one more point in the half and saw the Bears jump in front, 35-26 at the break.
At that point, PC had made 8-12 threes to just 2-9 shooting by Mesa. Phoenix then made two more quick threes to start the second half and eventually took control, 54-34.
MCC narrowed the gap to nine, 63-54, but could get no closer.
Mesa had one of its colder nights of the season, hitting just 19 of 56 attempts (.339) and only four of 16 three-pointers.
Andrew Jones (So., Portland, Ore/Westview H.S.) was the only T-Bird in double figures, with ten. Mesa owned the boards, 44-30, with Kyle Bingham (Fr., Mesa, AZ/Mountain View H.S.) and Jordan Pratt (Fr., Mesa, AZ/Red Mountain H.S.) collecting nine each. But the T-Birds could not overcome PC's early three-point shooting.
Mesa will be on the road Wednesday, visiting Glendale at 7:30 p.m.