(RV) Thunderbirds Sink Gauchos With Strong Second Half
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Mesa Community College | 20 | 13 | 19 | 20 | 72 |
|
Glendale Community College | 16 | 18 | 7 | 16 | 57 |
Glendale Community College
| Game Statistics | Mesa Community College | Glendale Community College |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goals | (26-58) | (20-63) |
| Field Goal % | 44.8% | 31.7% |
| Rebounds | 49 | 21 |
| Assists | 18 | 13 |
| Turnovers | 24 | 14 |
Glendale, AZ - The Mesa Thunderbirds rebounded from a midweek conference loss to claim a road win on Saturday afternoon at Glendale Community College by a final of 72-57.
With the victory, Mesa; who are currently receiving votes in the latest NJCAA DII Women's Basketball National Poll, improve to 9-6 overall and return to the .500 mark in conference play, improving to 4-4 in Arizona Community College Athletic Conference (ACCAC) play. With the loss, the Glendale Gauchos drop to 3-14 overall and 1-6 in ACCAC action.
The Thunderbirds struggled on Wednesday evening in Thatcher and looked to quickly erase that from their memories on Saturday afternoon at Glendale, and they did just that! Mesa took an early 7-2 lead just two and a half minutes into the contest. MCC would outscore GCC 20-16 in the first quarter.
Glendale's defense came to play in the second quarter, as they limited the Thunderbirds to just 13 points. Glendale would eventually take a one-point lead into the halftime break.
In the second half, the Thunderbirds took the lead early and would never look back. Mesa responded in the third quarter by rattling off 19 points, all while holding Glendale to just seven points.
The T-Birds kept going strong in the fourth quarter, striking for 20 points on their way to the 72-57 victory. Both teams got in foul trouble early in the fourth quarter and Glendale came eerily close to having to finish the game with only four players on the court.
In the win, Mesa shot 44% from the field and 47% from beyond the three-point arc. Both Jayla Johnson and Stacey Begay both finished with season highs in scoring. Johnson finished with a team-high 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the field, while Begay chipped in with a season-best 20 points and a team-high 15 rebounds.
Mesa returns to action next Saturday, January 15, when they host Scottsdale Community College. Tip time is slated for 2 pm inside of Theo Heap Gymnasium.
Don't forget to check out the MCC Team Shop, as well as our Booster Club.