Shorts powers Gauchos past Tigers

The Saddleback men's basketball team captured the Riverside Holiday Tournament championship on Friday with an 84-77 win over host Riverside.  T.J. Shorts scored 33 points as the Gauchos rallied in the final five minutes.

Saddleback knew they had their hands full facing a Riverside squad that had topped 100 points in its previous three games coming into the finals.  The Gauchos looked in trouble when Riverside grabbed a 10-point lead with 5:12 remaining at 74-64.

That's when Shorts and the defense took over.  The sophomore from Tustin scored 12 points in the final 5:12 while the defense held Riverside to just three points in stunning the home town crowd.  The Tigers were only 1-of-6 from the field with three turnovers the rest of the way while the Gauchos took the game to the free throw line.   

Saddleback started taking the ball to the basket and forcing Riverside to foul.  The Gauchos made six layups and eight free throws down the stretch as the Tigers committed seven fouls.  The final dagger was a pair of free throws from Shorts with 13 seconds remaining to ice the win.

Shorts finished 10-of-20 from the field and 10-of-12 from the free throw line for the game, making good on 3-of-4 from three-point range.  He scored 81 points in three games for the tournament to easily walk away with MVP honors.  Joining him on the all-tournament team were Breaon Brady and Justin Faison, who finished with 13 points and eight points respectively in the finals.

Saddleback entered the prestigious RCC tournament with the No. 11 RPI in the southern half of the state.  After the three wins against high-profile competition, the Gauchos are now at No. 3 following Friday's win.

Saddleback will host the Bill Brummel Classic next Thursday thru Saturday at the gymnasium.  The Gauchos open with College of the Canyons at 7:00 PM.