Bell Puts Canyons on Verge of Another WSC Title, 76-66

Reggie Bell is a lot like one of those Terminators. No matter what you do to him, he just keeps coming back.

Pneumonia slowed the College of the Canyons forward for a couple of weeks in December and a sprained ankle set him back a bit in January, but there he was on Saturday night against Santa Monica, a stalwart in Canyons’ biggest basketball game of the year.

Bell, who didn’t start the first half, scored 20 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead Canyons to a stunning 76-66 victory at Santa Monica that all but clinched a second consecutive estern State Conference South Division title for the Cougars.

Canyons (22-6 overall), which has won six consecutive games, improved to 7-1 in division play and dropped Santa Monica to 6-2 with two division games remaining for each team.

The Cougars would have to lose both of their games (against Glendale and West Los Angeles) and Santa Monica would have to win both of its (against West Los Angeles and Bakersfield) for the Corsairs to win the division title.

“We can’t afford to be lackadaisical,” said Bell, who sported a one-inch cut along his left temple.

“We must keep the intensity. We’ll take no one easy.”

It wasn’t easy against Santa Monica (17-11), which had won 12 of its past 14 games. The Corsairs took Canyons into overtime earlier this season before losing, and they came out hot against the Cougars, sinking six of their first eight shots.

Santa Monica led, 14-7, with only six minutes gone and had Canyon’s leading scorer, guard David Langley, languishing on the bench with two fouls.

Enter Bell, who scored nine first-half points and sparked Canyons’ comeback. The Cougars, who committed 26 turnovers while battling Santa Monica’s vaunted full-court press, tied the score, 16-16, and took several one-point leads before the Corsairs pulled away again late in the first half.

With his team trailing 38-31, at halftime and shooting just 35% from the field, Canyons Coach Lee Smelser inserted Bell to start the second half. The Cougars sank eight of their first 11 shots after intermission and held Santa Monica to just eight points over the first nine minutes.

Canyons took its first lead of the second half, 46-44, on a Langley jump shot and the score remained close until the final minute, when the Cougars pulled away with some clutch free throw shooting.

Canyons scored the final nine points of the game.

Jeff Dorst slammed home a Marquis Wilborn miss to give Canyons a 69-66 lead with 1 minute 34 seconds remaining, then Bell added two free throws and center Jason Joynes hit five of six free throws in the final 30 seconds.

“(Bell) was playing really well when he got sick. That took a lot out of him,” Smelser said. “And just when he recovered, he hurt his ankle. His board work is the thing I notice the most. He can rebound with anyone.”

Canyons outrebounded Santa Monica, 50-36, and held the Corsairs to 28% field-goal shooting in the second half.

Langley finished with 15 points and Wilborn added 14 and 10 rebounds. Dorst had 11 points and 12 rebounds.