Boys Basketball: Titans Fall to League Foe

El Cerrito 70, Hercules 60

The Star: Marcel Jones had 21 points, 11 came in the first half keeping the Titans close.

The Turning Point: Trailing by just seven points heading to the fourth quarter, the Titans allowed the Gauchos to score the first five points of the period to open a 12-point lead. Even though they got close near the end, it was too much to overcome.

The Quote: "We have a very young team and each game we just make some key mistakes," said Hercules coach Drew Evans.

What's Next? Hercules hosts De Anza on Friday, Jan. 21 at 7 p.m.

Bottom Line: The Titans played a spirited game and made it close nearing the end but just couldn't pull off the upset.

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It's games like this that coach Drew Evans hopes his team will remember as the season continues.

The Titans (5-13, 1-3 ACCAL) fought the defending league champion El Cerrito team for nearly four quarters before losing a 70-60 decision as the Gauchos pulled away in the final two minutes.

"Our guys played hard. We are just a young team and we make some key mistakes," Evans said. "We have a lot of sophomores and juniors and if they keep playing hard, it will help them later on in the season."

For much of the first half, the Titans were hanging with the Gauchos (13-5, 4-0). A trio of 3-pointers by Jeffrey Lumsey in the first quarter and seven second quarter points by Marcel Jones, kept the Titan deficit at 37-31 at the half.

The teams traded baskets for much of the third quarter and when it came to the fourth, El Cerrito's lead was only 53-46.

At the start of the fourth though, El Cerrito -- ranked No. 6 in the latest -- put on a quick spurt, scoring  seven of the first 10 points, to take a 60-49 lead. But as they had done most of the night, the Titans made another run.

Rueben Hernandez and Jones each scored four points in an 8-2 run that cut the El Cerrito lead to 62-57 with three minutes left.

After a timeout though, the Gauchos righted the ship and scored eight of the final 11 points to secure the win.

Lumsey ended the night with 14 points, including four 3-pointers and Rodriguez nailed a pair of threes in his 10 point effort.

"Our concern is always offensive rebounds," Evans said. "We have a pretty small team and they controlled the boards tonight, but we kept it close."

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Hercules