Winning its fourth straight game, the Compton College men's basketball team pulled into a tie with Cerritos for first place in the South Coast Conference South Division with an 80-77 triumph over the visiting Falcons on Friday night.
Compton (15-9 overall) and Cerritos (16-8) are each tied for the division lead with 5-1 records. Compton avenged an 86-83 loss to the Falcons that opened SCC play on Jan. 22.
If both teams win their final four games, they finish with a share of the conference title, which would be the first by Compton in eight years (2017).
Directed by head coach Keith Hollimon, Compton trailed Cerritos 32-28 by halftime. The Falcons built an 11-point lead at 51-40, but Compton battled back and took the lead at 65-64 on a driving layup by Zoe Holman with 3:36 remaining.
Compton never relinquished the lead as Holman sank four free throws and Jeremy Cook two in the final 30 seconds.
It was Compton's near-perfect free throw shooting that was the difference overall as the squad made an impressive 29 of 31 attempts (93.5 percent). Holman converted all 11 of his line attempts, finishing with a game-high 21 points plus four steals and four assists.
Kentrell Freeman added 15 points (8-for-8 from the charity stripe) and pulled down 13 rebounds while Elijah Evans added 15 points. Cook finished with 12 points and four assists.
On Feb. 5, Compton reached a season high in points in a 111-90 victory over host El Camino. Holman had a rare type of double-double as he scored 23 points and made 10 steals while adding seven boards, five assists, and four blocked shots. Both Nathan Ibarra and Rey Daniels (plus five helpers) tallied 14 points, Jordan English netted 13 points, Erik Garcia 12 points and five assists, and Cook scored 10 points while dishing out eight assists.
In a Jan. 31 home contest, Compton withstood a 47-point performance by LA Southwest's Kenneth Tyree to beat the Cougars, 103-85. Ibarra scored 24 points off the bench, making four shots from beyond the 3-point arc. Freeman totaled 17 points and 15 rebounds, Holman poured in 17 points, Daniels had 16 points, and Cook contributed 10 points and seven assists.
Compton started the win streak in defeating LA Harbor, 75-68, on Jan. 29. In that victory, Holman made 9-for-12 from the floor as part of his 19 points, English registered 16 points and nine boards, and Evans scored 14 points.
In a SCC crossover on Jan. 27, Compton put a scare into state #3-ranked Mt. San Antonio, but the Mounties held on for a 76-74 win.
Next up for Compton is a Wednesday, Feb. 12 division contest at Long Beach City College. Tip-off is 7 p.m.