OFF TO THE RACES FOR ANTELOPE VALLEY COLLEGE MEN'S BASKETBALL AGAINST EL CAMINO

Photo by Bruce Jacobsen

LANCASTER - The Marauder men's basketball team knew what it was getting itself into when it faced El Camino, Friday night in the opening round of the 66th Annual Gregg Anderson Memorial Tournament.

The Marauders laced up their shoes and got ready to run.

And run they did.

AVC beat the Warriors at their own game and cruised to an easy 148-99 victory at Marauder Gymnasium on Newton Chelette Court. With the victory, AVC will face De Anza, which narrowly defeated MiraCosta 93-85 in the other quarterfinal game. 

The Marauders put up video game type numbers in their assault on El Camino including setting a Marauder record for most points scored in any half. AVC scored 86 in the first half and led 86-59 at halftime. Their 148 points scored in a game tied the record for most points scored in a game by a Marauder team.

Additionally, the 247 combined points we third most ever by two teams in AVC history and its 49-point victory was the eighth largest victory against in opponent in school history.

"We played alright. We really shouldn't have lost any of our previous games," AVC's Julian Payton said. "We need to clean up some of our turnovers and the nonchalant passes. I think we need to play more with a sense of urgency and be more active on the glass."

Payton finished with 19 points on an efficient 6-of-7 shooting. D'Mauria Jones and Greg Floyd scored 39 and 32 points respectively, both career highs for each player. Jones was 10-for-10 shooting in the first half and Floyd was 11-for-11.

AVC shot a blistering 89 percent in the first half on 34-of-38 shooting, mainly from fast break layups and easy dunks, five from Jones and two from Floyd.

"We needed this bounce back game," Payton said. "I'm pleased with the victory, but I'm not excited about it."

The Warriors employ a style of play in which they try outscore you by shooting a plethora of 3-pointers while applying full court pressure defense all 40 minutes of the game.

The Marauders used a 22-6 run in the first half to take a 49-23 lead. A 3-pointer by Angelo Solis put AVC 76-46 with 3:30 remaining in the first half, its largest lead of the game at the time.

AVC also set a school record connecting on 60 total field goals for the game. It outrebounded El Camino 62-37 and held an 86-24 advantage in point in the paint for the game.

The Warriors connected on 14 3-pointers in the first half but were limited to only four in the second half on 4-of-17 shooting.