In the opening game of the Glendale Tournament over the weekend, the Cerritos College men’s basketball team had difficulty shooting in their 67-49 loss to College of the Canyons. However, they turned things around and recorded wins over Orange Coast College (96-90 in overtime) and Victor Valley College (68-59) to capture the consolation championship of the tournament. The Falcons (7-5) will now play their first home game of the season when they host Compton College in a 7:30 p.m. game on Wednesday in a South Coast Conference crossover game.

    The team shot just 36% in the loss to Canyons, a team they defeated two weeks earlier, and didn’t have a single player score in double figures. The trio of sophomores Aaron Thompson (Washington Prep HS) and Travele Jones (Inglewood HS), along with freshman Wayne Chapman (Bellflower HS) each scored nine points, while Thompson led the team with eight rebounds. Sophomore guard Aaron King (Mayfair HS) added eight points, while freshman Van Girard (Gahr HS) contributed five rebounds and a team-high four steals.

    The shot selection and the tempo of the game was much more conducive to the style the Falcons like to play in their overtime win against Orange Coast. Jones led the team with 18 points and picked up nine of them in the overtime period, while King and sophomore guard Jerell Elder (Long Beach Millikan HS) both scored 17 points. It was a three-pointer by Elder to start the overtime period that got the Falcons started, while freshman Justin Gilliam (Warren HS) contributed 16 points. Thompson was limited to eight points, with Girard finishing with nine points.

    In the consolation championship game, Thompson scored 11 of his game-high 18 points in the first half, while he also pulled down seven rebounds and dished off four assists. King led the team in the second half when the team pulled away, scoring 11 of his 15 points, while Jones (13 points, five assists, four rebounds) also played well. Elder contributed nine points and six assists, with Gilliam checking in with eight points and seven boards. Chapman, who had three rebounds and three assists, also scored three points.