The Pirates' men's basketball team held off a late charge from Los Angeles Pierce College Saturday night, posting a 68-64 win over the Brahmas in Woodland Hills. Dayshone Henry had 23 points and nine rebounds for Ventura (18-7, 9-0), and Timothy Turner netted 18 points with eight boards and three assists. Shulton Tobin was the only other Pirate in double-figures with 11 points in the game.
Ventura took control of the game midway through the first half of play. With the score tied at 11, VC went on an 11-3 run to open up some space. Tobin made a pair of shots in the run, and Turner's lay-up with an assist by Jermaine Jordan made it 22-14 with 9:00 on the clock. The Brahmas closed the gap back to two points, by a three by Turner and a pair of charity shots by Henry opened things back up. Tone Patton hit a triple with 3:27 on the clock to stretch the lead to 10, and Dayveon Bates made it a 12-point margin, 34-22, on the next possession. The Pirates led at halftime, 35-24.
The Pirates extended their lead early in the second half, Tobin's three off Turner's dime made it 47-33 with 16:44 remaining in the game before Pierce worked the margin under double-figures. Midway through the half, Ventura hit four free throws on three trips down the floor to extend the lead back to 11, 54-43, followed by a bucket by Henry and a 3-pointer by Donavan Williams, making it 59-43 with 7:52 on the clock. Turner made a lay-up at the 5:24 mark to make it 61-46, before the Brahmas made their final charge. LAPC went on a 14-3 run over the next four minutes, closing to within 64-60 with just under a minute remaining. After a Turner free throw, Pierce made a bucket with 25 seconds left to make it a 3-point affair, 65-62. Henry's dunk on the next possession essentially sealed the deal in the 68-64 victory.
VC shot 54 percent from the floor (23-43) and 42 percent from behind the arc (5-12) and outrebounded the Brahmas 40-24, but 22 turnovers helped keep the game close at the end.
Ventura returns home on Wednesday Feb. 12 to take on rival Moorpark. Tip-off against the Raiders has been moved up to 6:00 pm at the Athletic Event Center.