Men's Basketball takes 2 wins against LSU

Men's Basketball Wins first games of the year

The Pioneers Men's Basketball team secured the first wins of their season this weekend against La Sierra University. Along with these wins being the first for the basketball team, they were also the first for PUC after struggling to get our seasons rolling. The Pioneers defeated the Eagles 69-68 on Saturday night with a nail biter ending. On Sunday, the Pioneers beat the Eagles 86-81, after Jamal Johnson made two vital free throws to secure their lead. On Saturday night, Alton Turner, a junior forward, ended the game with 16 points and 4 rebounds which helped the Pioneers sneak past the Eagles. Carson Anderson, 6'9 center, ran away with 7 rebounds in the first game, and 8 in the second. Victor Wariso, a senior guard, had an impressive 11 points and 7 rebounds in Saturday night's game, and 16 points and 6 rebounds in Sunday's game. Chris Jones, senior guard, had 15 points and 7 rebounds on Sunday to help lead his team to victory. The most impressive of Sunday's game was senior forward Isaiah McCullough with a very impressive 24 points in just 25 minutes. "There are a lot of new guys on the team this year, and I can feel our chemistry growing after each game," says Jamal Johnson. After these two games, most would agree with this statement. There is a lot of talent on this team, and it's apparent in the stats for each of the guys. "I feel as if the games went very well last weekend, we were able to stay together as a team to work through any adversity that came our way, and we ended up taking the wins. We have plenty of work to do, and I couldn't ask for a better team and coach to work with," says Carson Anderson. This team shows a lot of promise and we're excited to see how the rest of the season plays out.

Here are a few words from head coach Greg Rahn: "I feel that the games went well in terms of where we are in the limited time we have had together as a group. With under a month of actual practice and now essentially playing seven games in 14 days, I credit our young men for sticking together to earn the two wins over the weekend. We are still processing on the court as we are continuing to learn, but I saw many improvements from Saturday's game to Sunday's game as the players are starting to find a better feel and rhythm within our system. Our guys did a great job controlling what we can control which we consider to be our effort, energy, and attitude, which I believe, taking care of those three things gives us the best chance to compete on a daily basis. I'm extremely proud of the players on this team and look forward to our continued growth together."