Walla Walla Community College’s men put another notch in the win column Saturday evening in the WWCC Dietrich Dome.
But it was anything but pretty. Or satisfying.
“This was the poorest we’ve played in a long time,” coach Jeff Reinland said after the Warriors’ 69-63 victory over Big Bend in Northwest Athletic Conference East Region basketball play.
Trailing 32-24 at the half, WWCC’s Jake Albright scored all 20 of his points in the second half to help lift the Warriors.
“We got Jake open on some rolls and got him layins,” Reinland said.
The win moved WWCC to 9-2 in the East Region, putting the Warriors atop the East with North Idaho. The Warriors, now 19-5 overall, defeated North Idaho 85-82 on Jan. 17.
Albright led four Warriors in double-figure scoring and also had a team-high seven rebounds. Landon Radliff tallied 18 points, Kendall Watson scored 13 and Damen Thacker scored 12 for WWCC. Big Bend’s Mauricio Smith came off the bench for a game-high 22 points.
“Give the guys credit for grinding it out and pulling it out,” Reinland said. “But we had absolutely no energy, no passion, no determination.
“It was a very, very hard game to coach. I feel like I just lost about 10 years off my life. We just were not ready to play at all.”
WWCC continues East Region action with an 8 p.m. Wednesday game at Yakima.
“We’ve just got to play better, with more passion, more perseverance,” Reinland said.
WWCC 69, Big Bend 63
BIG BEND (63) — Huerta 11, Hawkins 8, Dittman 14, Stowers 8, Brown, Smith 22, Ahmann, Christensen. Totals 24-62 13-18 63.
WWCC (69) — Porter 6, Thacker 12, Radliff 18, Watson 13, Albright 20, Tiller, Smith, Anderson, Engstrom. Totals 27-68 11-13 69.
Halftime — Big Bend, 32-24. 3-point goals — Big Bend 2, WWCC 4. Total fouls — Big Bend 15, WWCC 18. Fouled out — none. Technical fouls — none. Rebounds — Big Bend 44, WWCC 39. Turnovers — Big Bend 14, WWCC 10. Assists — Big Bend 2, WWCC 6.
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