Gauchos gain ground with win over IVC

The Saddleback basketball team improved to 5-2 in Orange Empire Conference play with a 72-50 win at Irvine Valley College on Friday night in Irvine.  With the win the Gauchos are now just 1.5 games out of first place after some shake-up in conference play.

Saddleback and Irvine Valley were close through the first six minutes as the teams traded the lead four times.  The Gauchos finally took the lead for good when Nik Lipovic drained a three-pointer for a 12-10 lead at the 14:00 mark and never let the Lasers back in the game.  Lipovic's bomb was the beginning of a 12-0 run that saw Saddleback up 21-10 at the halfway point of the opening frame.  The Gauchos would stretch the lead to 13 at one point during the half in taking a 39-31 lead into the locker room.

Saddleback quickly opened up a 12 point lead on the opening possession of the second half when Captain Whitlock drained a three-pointer for a 42-31 advantage.  Minutes later the defense clamped down on the IVC offense, holding the Lasers scoreless for 5:16 as the lead swelled to 53-35.  David Dial capped off the run with a jumper as the Gauchos were in full control the rest of the way.

Saddleback's guard duo of Dial and Whitlock would finish with a combined 36 points and 10 assists, with Dial scoring a team-high 19 points and adding eight assists and five rebounds.  The Gauchos shot a blazing 6-of-13 from beyond the arc for the game while shooting 57% from the field.

Dillon Waikle proved to be too much for Irvine Valley inside.  The sophomore from San Clemente blocked a season-high five shots while scoring seven points for the night.

Saddleback is now 12-7 overall and 5-2 in Orange Empire Conference play heading into a big showdown with Fullerton College (17-1, 6-1) on Wednesday night.  The Gauchos are 1.5 games back of Riverside City College (12-8, 7-1) and one game behind both Fullerton and Santiago Canyon College (18-1, 6-1) in the standings after the Tigers gave Fullerton its first loss of the season on Friday in Fullerton. 

Saddleback and Fullerton are set to tip off at 5:00 PM inside the Saddleback Gymnasium on Wednesday night.