Pirate Men Back on Track With Victory Over Moorpark

The Ventura College men's basketball team got back on track Saturday evening with a 79-67 victory over Moorpark College at the Athletic Event Center. Cordel Hankerson torched the nets for 27 points with six rebounds and five steals and Vida Faniel was solid once again with 21 points including an 11-11 night at the free throw line, with nine boards. Isiah Reyes returned to the lineup to contribute nine points off the bench for Ventura (11-11, 2-1).

After two lead changes and three ties in the first eight minutes of play, VC took control with a 10-0 run over 1:38 of game time.  Hankerson got it all started with a 3-pointer off a Faniel assist, then hit for two on the next possession. Faniel then hit back-to-back buckets, the latter of a Thomas Frank assist, then made a free throw with 10:24 on the clock to make the score 22-12 for the Pirates. Following a Raider charity toss, Ventura score five more points off field goals by Trevor LaCount and Hankerson, then another free shot by Reyes.

Back-to-back triples from Isaac Ramirez and Hankerson stretched the lead to 15, 35-20, with 3:48 remaining in the half. Faniel went 8-8 from the free throw line in the final two minutes to help VC open up a 44-27 lead at halftime.

Hankerson and Faniel led the charge to start the second half, with a 3-pointer and two free throws, respectively, as the Ventura lead ballooned to 22 points, 49-27, in the first minute of play. At that point Moorpark began a comeback scoring the next 11 points of the game over five minutes. Hankerson hit from range with 14:15 left in the game began a 9-0 Pirate run to push the lead back to 19, 58-39, two minutes later.

The Ventura offense went cold for the next four minutes, but they held fast on the defensive end allowing one 3-pointer over that span. VC maintained a double-digit lead throughout the end of the contest, although the Raiders did pull to within 10 points, 77-67, in the final minute.  The Pirates ultimately posted the 79-67 victory.

Ventura returns to action on Wednesday Jan. 25 at Oxnard College. Tip-off against the Condors is scheduled for 5:00 pm and the game can be seen live on the VC Sports Network.