University of Antelope Valley Men’s (2-5, 1-0 Cal Pac) and Women’s Basketball (5-2, 1-0 Cal Pac) successfully opened up Cal Pac Conference play at La Sierra University in Riverside, CA with two huge wins in two high scoring match-ups.

In the women’s game, the Pioneers blitzed the Golden Eagles from the start with a 10-2 scoring run in the first 90 seconds of the game. The run was fueled by two three-pointers from #3 Clarissa Perez. The scoring would then slow down significantly, but the Pioneers maintained control of the game all night long. UAV would win the opening quarter 23-13. In the second quarter, the Golden Eagles did a much better job of getting back in transition on defense which helped them slightly slow down the Pioneer offensive attack. UAV would still win the quarter 17-15 for a halftime score of 40 to 28.

In the second quarter, both teams picked up the pace and had their best offensive quarter respectively. UAV shot the ball a lot better from deep with a 39.3% three-point shooting percentage in the second half. The Pioneers continued to build their lead and a big key to their success was their outstanding offensive rebounding in which they collected 36 offensive rebounds for the game. UAV converted those extra possessions into 39 second chance points. In the end, UAV came off the court victorious in a 95 to 68 win over La Sierra.

The Pioneers had noteworthy performances from #3 Clarissa Perez with 17 points, #0 Jillian Neel with 11 points and 4 rebounds, and #22 Taylor Jackson with 11 points. UAV will look to extend the winning streak to five games against St. Katherine College on December 7th at 5pm at the Pioneer Event Center. Click here to access the game link.

“As a program, it’s exciting to get our first conference win,” said UAV Women’s Basketball Head Coach, Jason Pruitt. “We are improving, but we still need to do a better job executing on the details. We know what we need to work on and are looking forward to preparing for our next game this week in practice.”

In the men’s game, the Pioneers and the Golden Eagles put on an offensive showcase throughout the game. The first half was an absolute race to see who could score next. UAV was on fire from seemingly every spot on the floor as the team shot 55 percent from the field and 59 percent from downtown. The biggest key to the Pioneers’ success was the unselfish ball movement and extra passes to one another. UAV built a solid 10-point lead at the break to lead the game 58 to 48.

La Sierra hoped the Pioneers would cool off in the second half, but the Pioneers turned up the heat even more. UAV drained eight more three-pointers in the second half at an 80% clip. UAV would reach the century mark in points with

five minutes to go in the game. The ball continued to find the open man as the Pioneers assisted on 25 made baskets. UAV also benefited from two sparkplugs off the bench in #15 Steve Bush who racked up 13 points (4/7 3PT) and #25 Terrence Blum who scored 18 points in 18 minutes on 6 of 6 shooting from the field. The Pioneers made a statement with a 116 to 89 win over La Sierra.

UAV had four starters in double figures in scoring. Most notably, #5 Franky Teran scored 20 points and 8 assists and #23 Miles Nolen-Webb was a rebound shy of a triple-double with 16 points, 10 assists, and 9 rebounds.

“I’m proud of the progress our guys made today,” said UAV Men’s Basketball Head Coach BJ Porter. “We are a tough team to beat when we are sharing the ball well and winning the 50/50 balls. Defensively, we will continue to put in the work to get better as a team on that side of the court.”

UAV Men’s Basketball will finally return to defend home court this Tuesday, December 3rd versus Shepherd University at 7:00pm at the Pioneer Event Center. The game will be aired via Livestream at uavpioneers.com.

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