Hawks Fall to Gladiators on Opening Night

SAN JOSE (11-1) - The Hawks came from behind against CCCAA #11 Chabot College but fell short 68-60 in the first game of the 2018-19 season. The game was a part of the San Jose Tipoff Classic hosted by San Jose City College.

Paul Ohiri finished with twenty one points and nine rebounds, Khari Hutt had fourteen points and Drew Buggs snatched a double-double with ten points and twelve rebounds.

There were several times in both halves where Chabot stretched leads and Cosumnes River fought back to cut the deficit to a one possession game.

In the first half, Chabot had a 20-10 lead with 10:39 left. The Hawks then went on an 8-0 run to trim the Gladiators' lead to 20-18. Later in the half, the Gladiators had a 30-23 lead, but the Hawks responded with a 7-0 run to tie the game at 30-30 with twelve seconds remaining in the half.

In the second half, the Gladiators took their largest lead of the game at fourteen at 54-40 with 10:04 to play. The Hawks responded with a 14-4 run to trim the Gladiators' lead to two, at 58-56, with 4:20 left. With the Hawks down four with less than three minutes to go, and coming off a Chabot timeout, the Hawks trapped in the backcourt and almost caused a turnover. A deflection off the trap created a loose ball scramble that was picked by the Gladiators that led to a three to give the Gladiators a seven-point lead with 2:49 left.

After the game, coach Jonathan James stated, "I think we rebounded the ball at a high level and showed our athleticism throughout the game. We struggled from the line and left some points on the floor, but I'm confident we will recover from it."

Next up for the Hawks is CCCAA #18 Foothill College at 8 pm tomorrow in San Jose.