CBC, Walla Walla CC split basketball doubleheader (w/ gallery)

PASCO -- The key to winning basketball games is putting together a good run or two during the game.

The Columbia Basin College women and the Walla Walla men did just that Wednesday night to win their respective contests in an NWAACC East Region men's-women's doubleheader in Pasco.

The CBC women used a 17-4 run to open the second half and blew open a tight contest, beating the Warrior women 65-53.

The Warrior men, meanwhile, went on a 19-3 tear midway through the first half to take control over their game, 77-62 over the Hawks.

The women's game featured the top-ranked team in the entire NWAACC in CBC, while Walla Walla is ranked No. 3.

And while things were tight in the first half -- CBC led 31-29 at intermission -- the Hawks (18-2, 6-1 East) came out on fire in the second half. And not just on offense.

"How about playing defense in the beginning (of the half)?" CBC coach Cheryl Holden said. "That's been our Achilles' heel all season: not coming out and playing defense in the first few minutes of the second half."

Not this time.

The Hawks kept forcing the Warriors (14-5, 5-2 East) into turnovers and bad shots. Meanwhile, Jennifer Noon, Tiffany Idler and Ana Jimenez keyed the 17-4 run on offense to put the game away.

Noon had nine points, while Idler and Jimenez each had four in the run.

"They've got great 3-point shooters," said Idler of the Warriors. "Coach told us to take that away."

And that's what happened, said Walla Walla coach Bobbi Hazeltine.

"They did a real good job of taking us out of what we do," she said. "We knew that too. I told out shooters 'You're not going to get the shots against CBC.' We missed a lot of easy shots inside, and they made their shots."

The Hawks did, to the tune of 50 percent (26 for 52) from the field.

"That was very nice," Holden said. "I really liked our shot selection tonight. Sometimes teams have a tendency to take that first shot down the floor. But we were patient."

Hazeltine praised the play of Noon, who finished with a game-high 23 points -- 15 of which came in the big second half.

"I just got more touches in the second half," said Noon, who seemed more proud of the Hawks' defense. "That was our goal all night -- defend the 3 and the drive."

Idler finished with 15 points and nine rebounds, while Jimenez added 14 points. CBC point guard Katherine Samuels had 10 assists.

Michelle Seitz led the Warriors with 10 points.

Meanwhile, CBC men's coach Rolando Garcia is going to need a big second half of the season if his Hawks are going to make the NWAACC tournament.

CBC falls to 2-5 in East Region (6-12 overall) play with Wednesday's loss -- a full three games out of the last playoff spot.

"To be honest, I was panicked two games ago," Garcia admitted. "We can still do it. But regardless of what I think, it doesn't mean squat until our players believe it."

That was CBC's problem Wednesday night.

"We just weren't ready to play tonight," Garcia said. "It's very hard to compete against a team (like Walla Walla) when you're not ready to play."

The meltdown happened with about 12 minutes to play in the first half and the Hawks leading 15-12.

Led by Caleb Bravard, a freshman from Colfax, the Warriors exploded for a 19-3 run, and the game was essentially over. Bravard scored 14 points in the run, with three treys and a 3-point and-one play.

"Caleb is our best shooter," said Walla Walla men's coach Jeff Reinland. "He's been a work in progress. But he's got a lot of fire. He wants to be a player."

He was Wednesday, finishing with a game-high 20 points with five 3-point field goals.

As a team, the Warriors were 10-for-32 from the 3-point arc. When they lost 66-51 to the Hawks in the Dietrich Dome on Jan. 7, the Warriors for 5-for-36 from the 3-point arc.

Michael Crane added 12 points and 13 rebounds for Walla Walla (14-6, 5-2 East), while Hunter Hahn had 13 points and Jay Payne 12 more.

CBC was led by Christian Schrank's 12 points.

WWCC men 77, CBC 62

WWCC -- Crane 6-10 0-2 12, Radliff 1-9 3-4 5, Payne 4-11 0-0 12, Stannard 2-6 5-6 9, Mills 0-0 0-2 0, Caleb Bravard 7-13 1-1 20, Bills 1-1 2-2 4, Hahn 5-8 2-4 13, Arias 0-2 0-0 0, Hight 0-0 0-0 0, McGee 0-1 0-0 2. Totals 27-62 13-21 77.

CBC -- Jones 2-5 1-2 5, Barbaza 1-1 0-0 2, Walter 2-5 2-3 6, HeavyRunner 2-10 3-4 8, Smith 2-9 0-0 5, De La Garza 2-7 0-0 5, Christian Schrank 6-11 0-0 12, Piippo 2-6 1-2 5, Ponce 1-1 1-2 3, Igbinoba 2-3 0-3 4, Douglas 1-4 0-0 2, Hay 0-0 0-2 0, Haynes 0-0 0-0 0, Bolt 2-2 1-1 5. Totals 25-64 9-19 62.

Halftime-- WW 35-21. 3-point goals-- WW 10-32 (Crane 0-1, Radliff 0-3, Payne 4-11, Stannard 0-2, Bravard 5-10, Hahn 1-3, Arias 0-1, McGee 0-1), CBC 3-18 (Jones 0-3, Walter 0-2, HeavyRunner 1-3, Smith 1-3, De La Garza 1-4, Schrank 0-2, Piippo 0-1). Rebounds--WW 43 (Crane 13), CBC 40 (HeavyRunner 6, Igbinoba 6). Assists--WW 14 (Radliff 7), CBC 14 (De La Garza 4). Turnovers--WW 13, CBC 12. Fouls--WW 19, CBC 25.

CBC women 65, WWCC 53

WWCC -- Seitz 3-7 3-4 10, Klarich 1-2 0-0 2, Hawkins 1-2 0-0 2, Stillar 2-7 1-1 5, Pfefferle 3-5 0-0 9, Humphries 1-4 0-0 2, Felgenhauer 4-11 1-2 9, Edmunson 1-4 3-6 5, McDonald 0-0 0-0 0, Jensen 4-12 1-1 9. Totals 20-54 9-14 53.

CBC -- Idler 7-15 1-4 15, Jennifer Noon 9-16 3-4 23, Young 3-9 0-4 6, Avery-Winchester 0-0 0-0 0, Jimenez 5-7 3-4 14, Samuels 1-3 1-3 3, Molsbarger 1-2 0-0 2, Reynolds 0-0 2-3 2. Totals 26-52 10-22 65.

Halftime-- CBC 31-29. 3-point goals--WW 4-8 (Seitz 1-2, Klarich 0-1, Stillar 0-1, Pfefferle 3-4), CBC 3-7 (Noon 2-4, Jimenez 1-1, Samuels 0-2). Rebounds--WW 36 (Edmunson 6), CBC 34 (Idler 9). Assists--WW 11 (Edmunson 4), CBC 21 (Samuels 10). Turnovers--WW 23, CBC 14. Fouls--WW 20, CBC 14.

This story was originally published February 2, 2012 at 12:00 AM with the headline "CBC, Walla Walla CC split basketball doubleheader (w/ gallery)."