By Assistant Head Coach Britain Kelly
The Copper Mountain College men’s basketball team traveled up to Lemoore Wednesday afternoon. It was the first action for CMC following the Thanksgiving holiday. First year program West Hills-Lemoore College hosted CMC, as the Fighting Cacti looked to extend their win streak to 7 in a row.
It was an exciting first half and Copper Mountain jumped out to an early lead behind solid play from sophomore “Big Man” Kenny Bates. Going into the half, CMC held a 13-point lead. 36-23.
Great team defense and strong rebounding were the keys to opening up the lead for the Fighting Cacti in the second half. Twelve different players scored for Copper Mountain and four were in double figures. In the total team effort, Kenny Bates led CMC with 14 points and 10 rebounds, Anthony Rice contributed 12 points and eight assists, Zach Kroker added 12 points and eight rebounds and D’shaun Barrett chipped in 11 points.
The Fighting Cacti won the game, 82-53. Copper Mountain improved to 7-2 on the year and will face off against highly ranked Mt. San Jacinto College next Wednesday at 4 p.m. at Riverside Community College.
