Men’s Basketball Wins Third Straight to Open Season

TORRANCE, Calif. --- El Camino College recorded its third straight win to open the season with a 69-63 decision over Santa Ana Wednesday night at the ECC Gym Complex.

The Warriors (3-0) never trailed against the Dons (0-4) and led by as many as 23 points as they had five players tally double figures.

Billy Ray Barnes III led the team with 19 points, eight assists and four rebounds in 27 minutes off the bench. Gabe Hubbard added 13 points and seven rebounds with Mattias Sjolin scoring 12 points on 6-for-6 shooting. Dwayne Moore scored 11 and Mo Cruz had 10 for the Warriors in the win.

For the Dons, Court Franklin led the way with 12 points while Kelvonte Ellis and Russell Malone added 10 apiece in the loss.

The Warriors played a nearly flawless first half as they shot 57.1 percent from the field and hit seven of 10 free throws while holding the Dons to 29 percent shooting including 1-for-10 from beyond the arc, helping ECC head into halftime with a 16-point lead.

The lead would get up to 23 points with 16:27 left in regulation but the Dons mounted a 20-6 scoring run in a span of 8:19 to cut the Warriors' lead to single digits for the first time since the first time since the 5:19 mark of the first half.

But the Warriors would regroup and balloon the lead back up to 14 with 2:23 left to play and they were able to hold off Santa Ana for the victory.

The Warriors will return to action on Saturday night when they host Golden West for a 7 p.m. tipoff.