FENDING OFF BOBCATS

The 2023 Orange Empire Conference champs played their final regular-season game at home on Friday and finished with a 73-70 victory over Saddleback College.

After blowing past Irvine Valley College last Wednesday 78-51 on the road, Fullerton had some trouble against Coach Webster's alma mater fending off a tough Bobcat squad. Saddleback has been a hot team the past few weeks, winning six out of seven of its games hanging with Cypress for second place in the OEC.

It was a close game from the opening tipoff that featured 5 ties and 10 lead changes. Fullerton's largest lead of the game was 7-0 in the beginning minutes of the first half that was earmarked by Jeremiah Davis' layup. Saddleback soon pounced back getting within a point at the 11:40 mark on a layup by Gerald Jones III. The Hornets held a slight lead for the remainder of the half holding 34-30 edge by halftime.

The second half saw the Bobcats take their first lead at 13:10 when Gerald Jones III struck again on a layup putting his team on top 44-42. The tug-of-war was on as both teams exchanged buckets and leads, until Sean Newman Jr's drive to the basket giving his Hornets the advantage at 67-64 with 3 minutes left in regulation. Fullerton would not let go of the lead pushing back with every Bobcat advance. With 6 seconds left in the game, Sean Newman Jr. gave FC a 73-70 lead. Saddleback tried to sail on a deep three from the parking lot, but they could not pull the trigger as Jeremiah Davis displayed some lockdown defense forcing the ball out of bounds as the last second ticked off. 

Kobe Newton led all scorers with 18 points. Sean Newman Jr. had a big game with 16 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists. Jeremiah Davis put up 14 points and had 4 rebounds, while Sammy Howlin had 7 points with 8 boards. 

Up Next: The No. 1 in state Hornets (26-1 overall, 15-0 OEC) have one last OEC game to play before playoffs this Tuesday, February 14th when the team travels to Riverside City College. Tipoff will be at 5:00 pm.