Phoenix College hosted Pima CC Tuesday, November 23rd. It was the last game before Thanksgiving. The Aztecs defeated the Bears 79-67, giving them both their first conference and home loss of the season. "When you play primarily freshmen, they often forget this is college; and the momentum can swing quickly and powerfully, if you're not focused and disciplined for 40 minutes." Coach Eason commented. He's referring to the 7 point lead the Bears took into halftime, with complete control of the tempo.
However, the second half was much different, particularly in the last 10 minutes of the game. In that stretch, Pima scored on 16 out of 20 possessions; including 13 of their last 15. This resulted in a 48 point second half. Not to be out done by the offense, the Aztec defense held Phoenix College to 29 points in the second half. "It was as if a different team came out of the locker room in the second half; for both schools." Eason added.
The loss the dropped the Bears to 2-1, and eliminated their chances of cracking the NJCAA Top 20. Freshmen point guard and Tucson resident Cesar Saenz (20pts, 4 rebs, 5 asts, 3 stls, 3 blks) had another big game for the Bears.
