Story and photos by Mari Kneisel/COC Sports Information 

College of the Canyons pushed past the visiting West Hills Lemoore Eagles by an 89-72 final score at the Cougar Cage on Tuesday night, good for its second straight victory and third over the last four games.

Canyons (6-5) was slow to get going early in the first half, allowing the Eagles to open up a commanding a 15-5 lead in the first three minutes.

But the Cougars spent the next 10 minutes finding their rhythm, with a combination of forced turnovers and some hot shooting off the hand of Jimmy Galgano to batte their way back into the game.

COC took a 26-24 lead at the 7:40 mark in the half on a Galgano three-pointer, one of four the sophomore converted on in the opening period. Galgano came off the bench but finished with a game-high 20 points, going 6-of-10 from the field, with a total of five three pointers.

Once acquiring the lead, the Cougars continued to hold West Hills Lemoore (7-7) at bay.

The Eagles closed the gap a few times in the second half, coming within two points with 16:53 on the clock. However, each time, the Cougars were able to recover and pull away.

COC sophomore Dillon Barrientos put down 17 points, including 14 in the second half, after going 7-of-11 from the field with six assists and four rebounds.

Jonah El-Farra ended the night with a game-high 10 total rebounds to go with 14 points.

The Cougars’ reserves netted a total of 39 points with freshman Kaizz Maniego adding 11, sophomore Dylan Griffin with five and Mason Savery with three.

Top Performers

 – Dillon Barrientos – 29 min, 17 pts, 4 rebs, 6 assists, 2 stls, 7-of-11 shooting

– Jonah El-Farra – 31 min, 14 pts, 10 rebs, 3 assists, stl

– Jimmy Galgano – 27 min, 20 pts, 6 rebs, 2 assists, stl, 6-of-10 shooting

– Kaizz Maniego – 18 min, 11 pts, assist

Upcoming Schedule

Canyons will make a short trip to L.A. Pierce College on Thursday, Dec. 22 for a 6 p.m. tip-off.

The Cougars are then back in action hosting the 32nd Annual Cougar Holiday Classic on Dec. 28-29 at the Cougar Cage.

COC is set to face Mt. San Antonio College at 2 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 28 while Orange Coast College vs. L.A. Trade Tech College will tip off after at 4 p.m.

Day two action is set for 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. tip offs with matchups based on Wednesday’s results. All games will be broadcast to fans free of charge on the Cougars Sports Network.

Stay up to date on all this season’s action by following the College of the Canyons Athletic department on social media at @COCathletics on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube. 

To view more photos from the game by Mari Kneisel, click [here].