Hawks Thwarted in Late Surge  

An ice cold second half haunted the Santiago Canyon College men's basketball team as they played host to the Saddleback College Gauchos in conference play Friday night. The Hawks held a lead as large as 14 points in the ladder stages of the first half, but failed to hold on down to the double-digit cushion leading to a 78-70 defeat.

The advantage was held by the Hawks throughout the entire game up until the six-minute mark in the second half. The Bobcats converted an and-one play that put SCC's lead in the rear-view mirror. This was the only lead change of the entire contest.

The Hawks failed to hit a three pointer in the second half by going 0-for-9 from long range. As a team, they shot 30.4 percent from long range and 41.1 percent from the floor.

Sophomore guard Kai Smith lead the Hawks in scoring with 22 points to go along with seven rebounds, two steals and one assist. Freshman guard Eli Arthurton, who earned his second consecutive start, dropped 17 points which is his second-highest output of the season. He added seven rebounds and two steals.

Sophomore guard Isaiah Arthurton led with five assists and chipped in two buckets, while sophomore guard Joey Longo produced nine points, five rebounds and four assists.

The Hawks bench was ineffective in comparison to the Bobcat's reserves as they were outscored 34-14. Furthermore, the Hawks were outrebounded 42-30.