College Basketball : Valley’s 2nd Win in a Row Gives Starters a Breather

It’s not often that starters on the Valley men’s team spend the fourth quarter cheering from the bench.

But then it’s not often that Valley routs a Southern California Conference opponent--or any opponent--by 38 points.

The host Monarchs did just that Friday night, stomping Antelope Valley, 90-52, at Valley.

With two consecutive conference victories, Valley (5-14, 2-0) has begun to reverse its dismal nonconference showing. Valley has outscored its two SCC opponents by 68 points.

“We’ve got the shooting and the athletes,” Coach Jim Stephens said. “We should be winning a lot more than we are.”

Freshman Steve Ward scored a game-high 31 points and teammates David Weiss and Oral Elrington each scored 15. Weiss also pulled down nine rebounds and Mike Collins dished out five assists.

Valley jumped ahead early and led at halftime, 41-21. The Monarchs scored 49 points in the second half despite playing reserves most of the fourth quarter.

“They just played hard and hustled after the ball,” Stephens said. “We came up with loose balls tonight that we don’t usually get.”

Antelope Valley (1-15, 0-2) has lost 15 in a row since winning its season opener. Mark Meade and Frank Beach each scored 13 points for the Marauders.