Bobcats take down top-ranked Falcons

The Saddleback men's basketball team finished off the Riverside City College Tournament with a 69-59 victory over Cerritos College on Saturday in Riverside.  The Bobcats never trailed by more than one point in the game.

Cerritos opened the tournament ranked No. 1 by the California Community College Men's Basketball Coaches Association (CCCMBCA).  The Falcons ended up losing three straight games in the tournament, with Saddleback driving in the final nail on Saturday.

Saddleback opened the game with Nick Bowden draining a three-point shot on the opening possession for a 3-0 lead.  The Bobcats would only trail once after that point, when Cerritos claimed a 40-39 lead with 15:58 remaining in the game.  The rest of the second half was dominated by Saddleback, who quickly bounced back when John McFadden drilled a three-pointer for a 42-40 advantage on the next possession. 

Saddleback's defense clamped down on Cerritos down the stretch as the Falcons made just two out of their next 13 shots while the Bobcats built up a 57-48 lead.  Saddleback would make 12-of-14 free throws in a row to ice the game, thus turning back any attempt by Cerritos at a comeback.

Bowden finished with a game-high 18 points for Saddleback.  He was 4-of-10 from the field while making all eight of his free throw attempts.  Gerald Jones III led the Bobcats with eight rebounds on the day while Elijah Al-Debaran led the team with five assists. 

Free throws continued to be a strength on Saturday as Saddleback made 17-of-22 (77.3%).  The Bobcats are shooting 76.6% for the season through 11 games, with Bowden shooting 92.7% for the year.  

Saddleback is now 7-4 overall on the season.  The Bobcats will play at Santa Monica College on Wednesday before entering Orange Empire Conference play the following week.  Saddleback and Santa Monica are scheduled to tip off at 6:00 PM in Santa Monica.