Trailing 71-70 with time running out, freshman guard Cerroy Chenault (Warren HS) drained a three-pointer from the top of the circle with 3.9 seconds left to lift the Cerritos College men's basketball team to a 73-71 win over crosstown rival Long Beach City College. The win was the eighth in a row for the Falcons (13-7, 2-0), who will travel to El Camino College for a 7:00 p.m. South Coast Conference South Division game on Wednesday.

The teams have now played 120 times with each school winning 60 games.

After calling timeout with 14.5 seconds remaining, Cerritos appeared to look inside to sophomore Jacob Washington (Washington Prep HS/Los Angeles Harbor College), who had scored 13 of his 16 points in the second half. The Vikings were without both DeAnthony Fields and Matthew Schmidt, who had both fouled out and rotated guarding Washington. With the clock running down, Chenault pulled up at the top of the three-point circle and calmly hit the long range jumper, which was his third trey of the night. The Vikings had one last shot attempt, but it was off line.

Long Beach had opened up a 53-43 lead with 15:36 left in the second half until the Falcons worked their way back and took a 68-67 lead after Washington converted a three-point play with 1:41 remaining. Long Beach City missed their next shot and Cerritos had a chance to extend their lead. But freshman Joshua Harrison (Onate, NM HS) drove the hoop and missed on his shot attempt, which gave the Vikings a chance to take the lead, 71-70 when Khieem Williams drained a pair of free throws.

That set the table for Chenault and his game-winning shot.

In addition to his team-high 16 points, Washington pulled down six rebounds, while sophomore Jalen Washington (Bishop Montgomery HS) added 11 points. Freshman Jaishon Forte (Rancho Verde HS) posted 10 points, while Chenault finished with nine points.. The tandem of Harrison and freshman Joshua Belvin (St. Anthony HS) each recorded eight points, with Harrison also accounting for five assists. Limited to a combined four points, Daelyn Bams (Villa Park HS) and Dorian Harris (Cerritos HS) were solid on defense, as each blocked three shots.

Photos by Daryl Peterson