IE TRAFFIC

By Brandon Petersen

The Westcliff men's basketball team couldn't slow down Life Pacific's Jayceon Smith on Saturday night, dropping an 85–76 road decision to close a short post-Thanksgiving road trip to San Dimas.

Smith, a 6-3 sophomore from Riverside averaging 14.9 points per game, turned in the best performance of the night. He went 11-for-14 from the field for a game-high 26 points and added eight rebounds and four assists.

"Credit goes to Evan Jenkins, his staff, and team," Westcliff head coach Jerred Cook said. "They were able to execute their game plan. We planned for it. We scout it. We did walk-throughs. The same test came up and we failed. We beat ourselves. Too many unforced turnovers under our own basket."

Smith's efficiency set the tone for a Life Pacific offense that shot 55.6 percent overall.

Regardless, Westcliff kept the margin manageable throughout and got strong minutes from its backcourt.

DJ Henry came off the bench to score 17 on 5-for-8 shooting, including a perfect 3-for-3 from range.

Jeramiah Paulino added 16 points at point, and Michael Noulowe had 11 in and around the block.

The Warriors shot a respectable 49-percent and went 19-for-24 at the line, but couldn't generate enough stops defensively.

"They were the more aggressive team and it showed in rebounds and shot attempts," Cook said. "We got to the free throw line like we wanted. We shot 50-percent for the game, but it doesn't mean anything if the other team has more opportunities.

"We came out sluggish, got punched in the mouth, and played from behind the entire game. It's hard to come back but we had out opportunities. Rest, recovery, film and a whole lot of pracitice are in order for our next competition."

Life Pacific held a 33–23 rebounding edge and finished with eight different players filling the scoring sheet.

Westcliff trailed 44–37 at halftime and cut the deficit to two possessions several times in the second half, but Life Pacific had an answer for every push, with Smith leading the way.

The Warriors (2-2) will now tune up for a Dec. 7^th showdown with Bethesda at Golden West.

Tip is set for 4 p.m.