The Rio Hondo College men's basketball team closed out the 2016 portion of its winter schedule on a winning note as the Roadrunners beat Santa Barbara City College 76-67 on Saturday at the final day of the LA Southwest College Tournament.
Prior to Saturday's win, Rio Hondo suffered losses to Allan Hancock and host LA Southwest.
The victory snapped Rio Hondo's four-game losing streak and evened the Roadrunners' record at 8-8 overall. Rio Hondo is off for the next two weeks for the holidays and returns to action on Jan. 3, 2017 to take on Citrus College on the road at 7 p.m.
Rio Hondo 76, Santa Barbara 67
Freshman Justin Ayala came off the bench to score a team-high 15 points to help lead RHC to the win over the SBCC Vaqueros. Ayala sank a trio of three-pointers and was a perfect 4 for 4 from the free throw line.
Four other Roadrunners scored in double figures as Rio Hondo got 13 points from Derek Ohara, 12 points from Angelo Sandoval while Damian Salcedo and DeShaun Carr both scored 11 points. Carr also added a team-best six rebounds and three assists.
LA Southwest 93, Rio Hondo 77
On Friday night, the Roadrunners couldn't hold a late lead and suffered a tough loss to the host Cougars. With 9:05 to play in the second half, Carr nailed a three-pointer to give Rio Hondo a 67-61 advantage. But LA Southwest eventually tied the score up at 71 and put together a 15-1 run to take a commanding 85-71 lead with under three minutes to play.
The Roadrunners had four score in double figures as Trevon Welch led the squad with 18 points. He also added six rebounds and two steals. Ohara and Carr both scored 16 points while Damian Salcedo chipped in with 14 points.
Allan Hancock 71, Rio Hondo 59
The Roadrunners opened the tournament on Thursday with a 71-59 loss to Allan Hancock College. Rio Hondo led 29-15 at halftime before Hancock caught fire and outscored the Roadrunners 56-30 in the second.
Ohara was nearly perfect shooting on an otherwise rough night for the team. He made 5 of 8 shots on his way to a team-best 19 points. Adrien Hayes added 13 points while Sandoval totaled eight points and seven rebounds.