Men's basketball team gets back on track at Orange Coast

Courtesy of On My Game Photography
Courtesy of On My Game Photography

Irvine Valley's men's basketball team got its offense going again on Wednesday night in an Orange Empire Conference game at Orange Coast.

After three straight losses in conference play, IVC found its way by shooting 56 percent (32 of 57) as a team at Coast in a 87-70 victory.

The win improved Irvine Valley's record to 11-9 overall and 2-3 in conference.

Orange Coast's record slipped to 7-13 overall and 0-5 in conference.

The Pirates shot just 32.3 percent (21 of 65) as a team.

For the Lasers, freshman forward Lance Coleman II had 17 points and 13 rebounds, while freshman guard Bekim Djokovic added 14 points and four assists.

Freshman forward Parker Sims had his best game as Laser with 10 points and 15 rebounds and freshman guard Daniel Hernandez chipped in 10 points.

Kamar Reese had 16 points for Coast, while Tim Pena and Josh Mendoza each added 15 points and Nate Harding chipped in 10 points.

A hot start by the Pirates put the hosts ahead, 12-3, but Irvine Valley responded with a 12-0 run to get back into the game and take a 15-12 lead.

Both teams stayed close to each other for most of the opening half.

A Pena three-pointer tied the game at 29, but from there, IVC went on a 15-6 run to close out the opening 20 minutes.

The Lasers led, 44-35, at the break.

The hot shooting for the Lasers continued into the second half as the lead continued to grow.

IVC outscored the Pirates 26-19 over the first 11 minutes of the half to take a 70-56 lead with 8:27 remaining.

From there, the Lasers were not threatened the rest of the way.

Irvine Valley has a bye on Friday and plays again next Wednesday at home against Riverside at 7 p.m.