(Mesa, AZ) The Pima Community College men’s basketball (8-0, 3-0 in ACCAC) stayed unbeaten on Saturday after beating Mesa Community College (3-4, 1-2) in its first ACCAC conference road test of the season.
The No. 15 ranked Aztecs used a pair of runs in the first and second half to beat the Thunderbirds 109-88. The Aztecs have scored in double digits in all eight games this season.
Up 26-21 and coming out of a timeout with 8:21 left in the half, sophomore Dillan Baker (Salpointe Catholic HS) scored five quick points, which sparked a 12-0 run. Baker capped off the run with a three-pointer to make it 38-21. Mesa countered with a 9-2 run of their own to put the score at 40-30 but the Aztecs held a 49-34 advantage at the break.
The Thunderbirds were looking to make another run as they cut Pima’s lead to single digits at 62-53 with 15:00 left but the Aztecs put together another 12-0 run that was capped by freshman Moses Demalek’s three-point play to make it 74-53. The Aztecs led by as much as 29 points after freshman Cooper Jones’ (Buena HS) three-pointer made it 107-78 with 2:00 minutes left.
Baker finished with a game-high 29 points on 11 for 25 shooting. He also had five rebounds.
Sophomore Jaylen Alexander finished with a double-double of 23 points and 10 rebounds off the bench. He went 10 for 11 from the field and also had two assists, three steals and one block.
Freshman Jackson Leyba (Deer Valley HS) also provided a spark off the bench as he went 4 for 4 shooting with 12 points, eight rebounds and six assists. The Aztecs scored 52 points off the bench.
Demalek closed out the game with 15 points, eight rebounds and three assists as he went 6 for 10 from the floor. Freshman Cohenj Gonzales (Mesquite HS) had seven assists.
The Aztecs controlled the glass as they outrebounded the Thunderbirds 49-28 and grabbed 22 offensive boards.
The Aztecs face a tough road test on Wednesday when they play at Chandler-Gilbert Community College (8-1, 3-1). Tipoff is set for 5:30 p.m.
PCC 49 60 109
MCC 34 54 88
Press Release courtesy of Pima Aztec Athletics – Raymond Suarez
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