Mesa basketball hosts South Mountain on Saturday
Friday January 26, 2024 - 1:45 p.m. | Dylan DeVlieger
Mesa Basketball welcomes South Mountain Community College to Theo Heap Gymnasium on Saturday for ACCAC battles.
Women's Basketball:
The No. 6 MCC Lady T-Birds hold a 14-4 record (9-3 ACCAC) and are riding a season high six game winning streak as they defeated Glendale on Wednesday, 84-27. The Lady T-Birds hit 12 three-pointers during the win, their highest mark since early December. Ashiian Hunter led the way in scoring from the bench as she dropped 16 points and nailed five shots from long distance.
South Mountain enters play on Saturday with an 0-17 record (0-12 ACCAC). The Cougars have lost every game this season by double digits with their closest loss coming at the hands of Glendale, 58-48. SMCC is the only winless team in the conference.
The last time these teams took the court together MCC came out with an 84-44 victory. The Lady T-Birds were led in scoring by Miquedah Taliman who had 16 points as she nailed four three-pointers. MCC had 19 steals in the game which is the highest they've earned against any conference opponent this season.
Men's Basketball:
The MCC Men's Basketball team enters play on Saturday with an overall record of 4-14 (2-10 ACCAC). The Thunderbirds are in a slump as they've dropped their last 10 games. In their last contest, MCC came close to getting in the win column against Glendale but a last second Gaucho bucket sent Mesa home with their 14th loss of the year.
Orlando Gonzales had another standout game in the losst as he had 26 points, going 5-6 from beyond the three-point line.
South Mountain enters play on Saturday with an overall record of 6-13 (1-10 ACCAC). The Cougars have also hit a slump as they've lost their last four games including an 85-80 defeat at the hands of No.11 Chandler-Gilbert.
In their last game against Arizona Western, the Cougars were led in scoring by Jaylen Wesley who had 23 points in the loss. Wesley is the leading scorer in the conference as he averages 27.2 PPG on 47.8% shooting from the floor.
When these two teams met back in early January, the Cougars came out with a 76-61 victory over the T-Birds. SMCC shot 54.9% from the field which has been their best shooting performance in conference play this season.
The women's game will tip-off at 2:00 p.m. and the men will follow at 4:30 p.m. Admission is free to both games with the donation of a non-perishable food item.
Can't make the game? MCC Athletics has you covered, tune into T-Birds Sports Live to catch all the action!
