Community College Basketball : Orange Coast Falls Short Against Rancho Santiago

Rancho Santiago College withstood a late Orange Coast rally and hung on to defeat the Pirates, 64-63, in an Orange Empire Conference men’s basketball game Wednesday at Rancho Santiago.

OCC (15-14, 2-4) led at the half, 27-26. But Rancho Santiago rallied in the second half and led, 55-42, with 8:36 left on a dunk by Alonzo Jamison. OCC cut the lead to 58-57 with 3:04 left on a basket by Mike Miles.

Miles, a sophomore forward, led all scorers with 36 points, including 21 in the first half.

But Rancho Santiago (21-6, 6-1) got two free throws each from Jamison and Charles Guibord in the final two minutes to clinch the victory. OCC cut the lead to one on a three-point basket by Dareck Crane as time ran out.

Rancho Santiago can move into a first-place tie if it beats Cypress Saturday.