Owl trio comes up big

 Three Owl guards combined for 63 points to lead the team to a 98-84 victory over the Glendale Vaqueros on Saturday, maintaining their undefeated conference record.

Guards Kerry Carter and Brandon Parga scored 20 points apiece, while guard James Walker led the team with 23 points of his own.  Forward Kendrick Thomas had his third double-double in a row, finishing with 11 points and 14 rebounds.

Power forward Marquis Brooks of the Vaqueros also had a double-double, dropping a team-high 22 points and grabbing 10 rebounds.

This game didn't seem like a 14 point blowout.  The Owls (20-1, 7-0 WSC) ended the first half trailing the Vaqueros (10-13, 2-5 WSC) 44-51.  The Owls were missing their top rebounder and defender in Tyree Harrison for the third game in a row, and the Vaqueros took advantage.  The Glendale bigs shot a combined 11-14 from the field in the first half, with Brooks going 6-7 on his own.

The size differential was a problem early, as Brooks and center Soreen Derboghosian-Pakajaki scored 8 of the visitors' first 11 points.  The Vaqueros held the first half edge in points in the paint, outscoring the Owls 30-18.

The two teams traded baskets until a Thomas free throw at 10:06 gave the Owls a 26-24 lead.  From there the Owls struggled while the Vaqueros flourished, going on a 16-1 run over the next five minutesto take control at 27-40. 

Carter would regain Owl momentum when he nailed a 3-pointer with 2:23 left in the half.  20 seconds later he helped cut the Glendale lead to 38-44 after his steal on Brooks and following assist lead to a Nolan Abernathy fastbreak layup.

The Vaqueros would push the lead back to 42-51 when guard Robert Henry knocked down a corner 3, but Thomas tipped in a Parga layup at the buzzer to send the Owls into the locker room down seven.

After facing second half deficits for three consecutive games, Coach Victor had trouble diagnosing the team's first half problems.

"We just come out flat," he said.  "I don't know why this team needs to get punched once or twice in the face before they start playing hard."

The Owls responded his locker room message.  They started the half on a 12-2 run to take the lead 56-53, capped by another Carter steal.  This time he would finish the break himself, throwing down a two-handed jam that fired up the Owl faithful. 

Carter's fingerprints were all over this game.  He had also knocked down the go-ahead jumper for the Owls on their previous possession.  He shot 8-11 on the night, adding seven rebounds and a block to go with his two steals.  His 20 points were a season high.

Carter was quick to point out how emphasizing fundamentals led him to success.  "I feel like I was pretty aggressive," said Carter.  "The more aggressive you are bumping off the ball, being in the right position, sprinting to the pass… everything else kinda falls into place."

The Vaqueros were without the size and skills of Marquis Brooks for much of the second half due to foul trouble.  He picked up his fourth foul with 9:04 left and was forced to sit, leaving the Vaqueros without the size advantage they enjoyed most of the game.  The Owls kept up the pressure during his absence as an Abernathy 3-pointer extended the lead to 80-70 with just over 7:30 to go.

"We're not very deep [at that position,]" said Glendale head coach Brian Beuchemin. "So it's a glaring problem when we get guys in foul trouble."

Brooks was subbed back in and managed to cut the lead down to five after he knocked down a baseline jumper, but Brandon Parga answered with a 3-pointer to make it 83-75 with 5:20 left and the Owls never looked back. 

Parga shot a solid 6-11 from the field, making up for a 1-5 performance on Wednesday against Santa Monica.

"I got my legs back, I got my rhythm back," he said.  "I feel like I'm back to my old self."

In a bit of role-reversal from Wednesday, it was high-point man Walker who struggled from the field tonight, shooting only shot 5-15 from the field following a dominant overtime performance against Santa Monica.  However, he found a way to contribute from the foul line and converted 11 out of his 12 opportunities.

Despite the continued first half struggles, Coach Victor believes playing through adversity will help the team later on.

"Hopefully we can get Tyree back as soon as possible," he said.  "If we can continue to play this way and get Tyree back, in the long run it will help us."

The Owls next game is at the College of the Canyons this Wednesday.