Cougars Come Up Short 79-76 at Cypress

By Jesse Muñoz/COC Sports Information Director 

CYPRESS, Calif. — College of the Canyons came within three points of starting its season 3-0, losing a 79-76 ballgame on the road at Cypress College on Saturday.

Canyons (2-1) jumped out to an early 18-9 lead in the opening minutes before the Chargers (2-0) were able to battle back.

Cypress made it a 22-18 game with just over seven minutes to go, but the Cougars were able to eventually take a slight 34-32 edge into halftime. 

Sophomore Jah-Kez Moore led the Cougars in the first half with 11 points off the bench. He was a hot 5-of-6 to start the game and ended with 17 points.

Jordan Nash led all scorers with 23 points on a 7-of-12 shooting night. The sophomore also added a game-high five assists to go with three rebounds, and was a perfect 8-of-8 from the free throw line.

Nash's 14 points in the second half helped Canyons stay ahead until Cypress tied the game at 48-48 with under nine minutes to play.

The two teams would continue to exchange leads through the next several minutes before the Chargers opened up a 67-60 advantage on a three-point play with 5:36 to go. Canyons managed to keep things close through the duration, but was never able to regain the lead.

Christopher Bradford and Virgil Mahoney both checked in with nine points for COC. Joel Carrillo finished with eight points and four rebounds. Bradford's six rebounds led the Cougars.

Cypress had three players score in double figures with Kamron Barnes and Sebastian Castro each finishing with 18.

COC shot better than 47 percent from the field compared to 42.6 percent from the host Chargers. Cypress held a slight 38-34 edge in the battle of the boards.

The Cougars will next play in the annual San Juan Hills Toyota Classic hosted by Irvine Valley College Nov. 14-15.

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.