By Eric Trent
The Peninsula College men’s team fell 62-75 to top ranked Bellevue on Saturday night. The 13 point loss, however, wasn’t an indicator of how lopsided the game really was. PC hung with them until halftime, only down by five, thanks to a nine point rebound advantage. Bellevue pulled away the second half, overwhelming PC by hitting a scorching 50 percent of their shots, and attacking the rim with reckless abandon, either forcing a foul or nailing lay-ups.
PC kept it close in the first half, holding a 10-8 lead after the first six minutes, controlling the paint, and hitting close, high percentage shots. Bellevue came right back, going on a 14-2 run to take over the lead at 17-29 with 3:29 left before the half. PC then went on a 12-8 run to end the half at 29-34 in Bellevue’s favor. “I was proud of our guys. I thought we responded well in the first half” said PC head coach, Mitch Freeman.
Sharpshooting point guard, Ryley Callaghan, went off in the first half, dropping 12 points, with two silky smooth, long-range threes. “When the basketball is in his hands, usually good things happen” added Freeman.
Bellevue took over in the second half, as they reeled off a 26-13 run to start the half, pushing their lead to 23 with eight minutes left to play. PC was forced to foul in an attempt to slow down Bellevue’s unrelenting dribble-drive penetration. PC made a short run, with four minutes left, cutting the lead to 18, thanks to a pair of threes Deonte Dixon, and three inside shots by versatile guard, Jal Deng. But Bellevue never let up, slashing to the rim until the final minute and holding off PC to end the game at 62-75. “I was proud of our guys, we fought until the end” Freeman said.
PC shot only 25 percent in the second half. “It’s hard to win a game when you shoot that percentage,” Freeman said. “They had good size, and guys who can knock down shots.”
Deng ended the game with 18 points, five rebounds, and was eight for eight at the free throw line. Callaghan added 15 points, and Dixon had 11. “There’s a fine line between winning and losing. The turnovers and the execution offensively, finishing shots, are all things we have to continue to look at and work on in practice” Freeman said.
Peninsula dropped to 2-3 in league play and 9-8 overall. Bellevue improved to 5-0 in league play, and 18-2 overall. PC plays at Skagit Valley (2-3) 10-7, on Wednesday.