MBB Advances to Finals of We Play Hard Tournament

Ventura College men's basketball team faced off with Western State Conference foe Santa Barbara City College Friday, claiming a 92-60 victory in the semifinals of the We Play Hard Tournament at the Athletic Event Center. The win places the Pirates against Antelope Valley in the tournament finale in a rematch of the 2014 championship game. Jacob Alonzo and Elijah Brown both scored 14 points to pace the Pirate offense. Jamal Lewis and Dwayne Murrill both had five assists.

Building off a strong start to the season, the Pirates came out in the semifinal match up with SBCC and showed well for the second night in a row. Ventura used an aggressive defense to force 17 turnovers, six of those coming on steals with Murrill collecting two. VC again was strong on the boards picking up 27 defensive rebounds with Lewis' seven tops on the team. 

Ventura scored over 90 points again combining their three-point attack with an up-tempo offense to run away with the victory. VC hit 13 3-point shots in the contest on 28 attempts for a 46 percent average. Alonzo and Timmy Garcia each hit three shots from behind the arc while Cordel Hankerson hit two. Four different Pirates scored in double figures, while 12 players recorded points in the win. 

Ventura went into the half with a 42-27 advantage, then came out in the second half and built on their lead by outscoring SBCC 50-33.

Ventura advances to the tournament final for the second year in a row, setting up a rematch with Antelope Valley on Saturday Nov. 7. The Marauders won the 2014 tournament with a victory over the Pirates.  The game is scheduled for a 7:00 pm tip at the Athletic Event Center.