MEN'S BASKETBALL: The Ventura College men's basketball team raced out to a 12-point lead halfway through their Western State Conference opener Wednesday night at Cuesta, but 18 second half turnovers allowed the Cougars back into the contest late, as the Pirates fell 78-70 in San Luis Obispo. Rodney Bryant came off the bench to lead VC (7-10, 0-1) with 17 points while Vondel Faniel and Jalen Young each netted 16. Ivan Dooley and Devin Smith each grabbed seven rebounds for the Pirates.
The Pirates played one of their best halves of the season to open the game, taking a 40-28 lead into halftime. Bryant scored a team-high 10 points while Young and Dennis Savoy had eight and seven points, respectively.
The second half was a different story, however, as VC had a hard time holding on to the basketball. Cuesta scored seven of the first nine points of the period to pull within 42-35 at the 17:45 mark. Eric Davis helped VC stop the bleeding somewhat with a runner to make the score 47-39, but the Cougars maintained the momentum, closing to within 60-59 with 7:39 on the clock. Cuesta finally took their first lead of the game, 63-62, with 6:10 remaining, and VC never recovered, falling 78-70.
The Pirates will have a bye date on Saturday before returning home against Allan Hancock College on Wednesday Jan. 15. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 pm following the Pirate women's game at 5:00 pm at the Athletic Event Center.