Canyons Breathing Easier After Beating Santa Monica

Someone must have performed the Heimlich maneuver out at College of the Canyons--the Cougars are no longer choking.

A Canyons men’s basketball team that once could not win the close ones and fell to 10-12 after losing a one-point game to Valley a mere three weeks ago now is a strutting, confident Western State Conference Southern Division bully.

A Wednesday night game against visiting Santa Monica, ranked 17th in the state, was the sort of game Canyons might have lost in December. Leading by nine points with slightly less than five minutes to play, Canyons was on the verge of winning or losing.

The old Canyons might have found a way to lose, but the new Canyons ripped off eight unanswered points and went on to win, 88-75.

“We do feel more confident in ourselves,” said Canyons forward Reggie Bell, who had team-high totals of 21 points and 12 rebounds. “Coach has been talking about us winning the league, and we just started believing it.”

In December it was easier to believe in Santa Claus than the idea of Canyons as Southern Division champion, but the win put first-place Canyons (16-12, 6-1 in division play) in excellent position with three division games remaining. It also was Canyons’ sixth consecutive victory, its longest winning streak in several years.

“I knew we would be good if we could just get our confidence up,” Canyons Coach Lee Smelser said.

Canyons jumped to a 21-10 lead, fell behind, 31-27, and took a 39-35 lead at halftime. Leading, 50-46, with 14 minutes 56 seconds to play, Canyons picked up some breathing room with a 10-0 run.

Dorian Manigo made a free throw at the 4:56 mark to pull Santa Monica (19-10, 4-3) within 71-62, but Canyons never led by less than 10 thereafter.

In a physical game, Canyons outrebounded Santa Monica, 31-19. “They just had too much overall rebounding strength,” said Santa Monica Coach John McMullen, whose top rebounder, Earic Peters, missed the game because of back spasms. “They outquicked us on the boards, and they were more powerful.”

Typically, Canyons looks to Nick Sanderson for offense. However, with Sanderson struggling in a three-for-13 shooting performance, “Nick at Nite” was not Canyons’ offensive show.

Instead, all five Canyons starters scored in double figures.