Thunderbirds use sensational shooting to stymie Aztecs, 94-91
| Final | 1 | 2 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Pima Community College | 48 | 43 | 91 |
|
Mesa Community College | 39 | 55 | 94 |
Pima Community College
| Game Statistics | Pima Community College | Mesa Community College |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goals | (33-65) | (36-63) |
| Field Goal % | 50.8% | 57.1% |
| Rebounds | 32 | 27 |
| Assists | 20 | 19 |
| Turnovers | 13 | 8 |
| Pts off Turnovers | 17 | 16 |
| 2nd Chance Pts | 15 | 9 |
| Pts in the Paint | 36 | 42 |
| Fastbreak Pts | 0 | 0 |
| Bench Pts | 16 | 40 |
Mesa, AZ—In an attempt to strengthen their postseason position, the Mesa Community College men's basketball team (11-12, 10-8 ACCAC) outlasted the Pima Community College Aztecs (14-12, 9-9 ACCAC) in a high scoring Arizona Community College Athletic Conference affair on Wednesday night in Mesa by a score of 94-91.
Even though the Aztecs shot 57-percent from the perimeter for the game and led by 16 points at one point in the first half, Mesa used a 70-percent shooting effort in the second half and five total players finishing in double figures, led by freshman Obi Megwa and sophomore Jordan Higgins, to secure 11-straight wins over Pima for head coach Sam Ballard.
Besides sophomore Nate Jimerson landing the first two points of the game, the Aztecs ran wild to open the game as sophomore Yusuf Shehata, who led all scorers with 24 points, and freshman Keven Biggs combined for 12 early points to give Pima a 22-6 lead less than six minutes into the game.
With the help of eight combined points from Megwa and Higgins in a five minute stretch, the Thunderbirds were able to cut the deficit to eight, 26-18, but four points from sophomore Justice Martion and three key perimeter jumpers from Shehata gave Pima a 41-29 lead with less than three minutes remaining in the first half.
After a layup from Martion with less than a minute to play in the opening half gave Pima their second largest lead of the night, a three pointer from freshman Trevor Johnson and a bucket at the buzzer from freshman Edward Hardt cut the Mesa deficit to nine at the half, 48-39.
Behind the efforts of freshman Brandon Dixon, sophomore Sam Hainline and Higgins, the Thunderbirds opened the second half on a 21-13 scoring run that left Mesa only down by one, 61-60, with 10:45 remaining in the game.
The Thunderbirds then used four straight field goals from freshman Isaiah Easaw, Hainline and Megwa to take their first lead of the game since the opening basket, 69-65.
Pima was able to recapture the lead at 77-76 behind three point baskets from Shehata and Biggs, but sophomore Kyle Bingham finished at the rim on multiple occasions and Dixon answered the bell with two separate three pointers to give Mesa an 85-78 lead with less than two minutes to play.
Pima was able to connect on late perimeter jumpers from freshman Kwintin Williams, Shehata and Martion, but Mesa buried seven of their final eight free throw attempts to garner their seventh home win of the season, 94-91.
The Thunderbirds will next be in action this Saturday afternoon as they head south to take on the Central Arizona College Vaqueros in an ACCAC match-up set to start at 4:00 p.m. MST.