The Ventura College men's basketball team returned to the win column Saturday afternoon with a convincing 94-73 victory at Moorpark. Marcus Watson led the Pirates with 25 points and Adrian McIntyre topped out at 20 points with five assists. Anthony Garza scored 16 with nine rebounds and six dimes while Daniel Crocker posted a double-double of 16 points and 11 boards. VC (19-6, 7-2) now holds a 1/2 game lead over Hancock in the Western State Conference North standings.
The teams battled it out early with eight ties and four lead changes in the first 14 minutes of play. Crocker broke a 28-28 tie with a jumper at the 5:51 mark of the first half to put Ventura ahead for good, followed by a steal by Kordell Gordon leading to a lay-up by Watson.
Watson scored on another drive at the 3:31 mark to expand the lead to five. 36-31, and McIntyre's three followed a minute later. Watson cashed in a Tony Njia dime for three with 1:7 on the clock to make it a double-digit lead, 42-31, and Michael Noulowe's dunk gave the Pirates a 46-35 halftime edge.
After an initial Raider field goal to open the second half, the Pirates ran off six straight points, two Watson lay-ups and a dunk by McIntyre, to take full control. Crocker made a pair of free throws at the 13:32 mark to make it a 14-point game, 60-46, before MC made a 9-0 run. Njia ended the skid with a lay-up off a Garza assist, Crocker hit a deuce, and McIntyre hit from downtown to put momentum back in the Pirates' favor, 67-55, midway through the second half.
Ventura's lead would not dip below 10 points for the remainder of the game as they kept the pressure on the Raiders. Kai Johnson began another 7-0 VC run with a lay-up with 5:53 remaining, and McIntyre hot another shot from range on the next possession. Gordon's lay-up off Johnson's assist made it 80-63 with 3:47 on the clock. VC outscored Moorpark 10-2 in the final two minutes of the game to set the final margin.
The Pirates next return home to face Los Angeles Pierce on Wednesday Feb. 8 at 7:00 pm.