Men's Basketball
Corsairs down Sierra
By by Jackie Christensen/ Eureka Reporter
Nov 17, 2006, 13:15

Apparently the College of the Redwoods men’s basketball team doesn’t believe in rankings.



CR’s Colt Mathews and Tom Higgins hit five 3-pointers each and the Corsairs got double-digit scoring from four different players to cruise past Sierra College 86-64 Thursday night at CR.

Coming into the game, 4-0 Sierra was ranked No. 5 in the Northern California Community College coach’s poll and No. 10 in the state, but an unimpressed CR team was running on all cylinders and played virtually mistake-free basketball.

“I’m real happy with our performance,” said CR head coach Skip Gleason. “We knew Sierra’s a very physical team and we couldn’t afford to be passive. I’m very proud of our effort. We played the full 40 minutes and really stepped up tonight.”

All but seven of CR’s 86 points came from four players.

Mathews, who had a game-high 22 points, hit four 3-pointers in the first half to help CR charge back after falling behind early, and the Corsairs spread the love as freshman Darren Nye and sophomore Owen Lutje each chipped in 20 points, and Higgins finished with 17.

“We got beat in every single aspect of the game,” said Sierra head coach John Fusano. “It was complete and total domination on their part. We were 100 percent out-coached and out-played and it’s just not acceptable.”

After starting out a bit shaky, missing open looks inside and giving up easy transition baskets, the Corsairs settled down and fell into a rhythm they held through the rest of the game.

After taking over the lead midway through the first half, the Corsairs steadily built on their advantage and took their biggest lead of the game, 86-62, with 1 minute, 14 seconds remaining.

“We’ve talked a lot about the importance of possession and maximizing it by not turning the ball over,” Gleason said. “We had very few turnovers tonight and we matched up pretty well with them defensively. I told the guys that they should be very proud of themselves for stepping up and playing ball like we’re capable of.”

With the win, the Corsairs improved to 3-2 on the season, and their next game is scheduled at home against Mendocino on Tuesday.

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