GLENDALE COLLEGE BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT : Cypress Can’t Handle Pressure, Falls to Glendale, 68-55

Don Johnson, Cypress College basketball coach, thought it might happen, and even said so before the game.

He had seen his team play well the previous night in a victory over Compton and knew a letdown was coming.

It came all right, in the form of a 68-55 loss to Glendale on Saturday in the championship game of the Glendale tournament.

Cypress had shot 71% in an 87-65 victory over Compton Friday in a semifinal game.

“We just played so very well it will be hard to duplicate,” Johnson said before Saturday’s game. The Chargers weren’t even close.

Glendale used a pressure defense to take Cypress out of its inside game and forced 22 turnovers.

Cypress is normally led by 6-foot-10 center Eric Pauley and 6-9 forward Andre Lamoureux, both are averaging 14 points a game.

But Pauley was held to eight points and Lamoureux seven. Pauley had one point in the second half and Lamoureux didn’t score. Pauley also had nine turnovers.

“We knew that would be their game plan,” Johnson said of Glendale’s collapsing defense. “We just didn’t adjust. Those are things that take a lot of time to adjust to. We can’t do it in just one game. We planned to get it inside then kick it out back, but we didn’t.”

Cypress led at the half, 32-31, but Glendale went on an 8-1 run in the first five minutes of the second half and never trailed after that.

Cypress (10-2) rallied to get within five but Glendale (9-5) pulled away in the final 2 1/2 minutes.

“We played a perfectly awful game against a good team,” Johnson said. “We just can’t seem to handle the physical part of the game.”

All five of Glendale’s starters scored in double figures.

Dave Swanson led with 18, Justin Lord had 14, Gary Fowler 13 and Vigen Serop and Bruce Heicke each had 10.

Heicke was voted the most valuable player of the tournament.

Vince Hizon had 13 and Nate Shea-han 12 for Cypress.

Grayle Humphrey made four of four free throws to extend his consecutive streak to 25.