SSCC Basketball Team Comes Out on Top

The Southern State Community College men’s basketball team traveled to O.U. Chillicothe Monday, Nov. 8 to take on the Hilltoppers for their third game of the season.

The Patriots started out strong right at the beginning of the game, showing what they could do. They immediately jumped up to a twenty point lead before Chillicothe could call a timeout. “Our players came ready to play offensively and defensively. We were able to knock down some open shots and we minimized O.U. Chillicothe’s second chance opportunities,” commented SSCC Basketball Coach Jason Moberly. The Patriots kept the lead going into halftime, being up 44-29. “Mike King played an excellent first half. Not only was he almost perfect from the field, but he grabbed a lot of rebounds on both sides of the floor. We were very impressed with the way Mike played,” stated Moberly.

At the beginning of the second half the Hilltoppers tried to make a comeback, but the Patriots fought hard to keep that from happening. The Hilltoppers came within 12 points until the Patriot’s press caused numerous turnovers creating some easy buckets. “I was really pleased with the way our team played tonight. At the beginning of the second half we set back and let OU come to us instead of attacking them like we did at the beginning of the game. We still have a little work to do on the defensive side of the floor but with the group that we have this season, it shouldn’t take us long to get in a good groove and keep it there,” remarked Moberly. The Patriots ended up with an 86-72 victory. “The difference between this team and teams we’ve had in the past is that we have 11 players that can start on any given night. All eleven of our players played really good basketball tonight and I’m sure if we keep getting better each game like we have been, then we will be sitting well at the end of the season,” commented Moberly.