The Hocking College Men’s Basketball team (2-9) fell 79 – 66 to Cuyahoga Community College (8-1), the fourth-ranked team in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) D-II, on Saturday, Dec. 1.
Freshman Azende Johnson from Columbus led the Hocking Hawks with 26 points, shooting 8-19 from the field. Johnson scored 24 of his 26 in the second half, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the Challengers. Sophomore Jarell Giles from Flint added 14 points for Hocking College, going 8-9 at the free throw line.
Hocking College cut a 20-point deficit in the second half to seven over an 11-minute span. Johnson sparked the comeback with three 3-pointers, shrinking the gap to 69-62 with 2:09 remaining.
Josh Bradford paced Cuyahoga Community College with 22 points. Cuyahoga out rebounded the Hawks 35-22.
Hocking College falls to 0-3 in the Ohio Community College Athletic Conference (OCCAC) and 2-9 overall. Cuyahoga improves to 3-0 in the OCCAC and 8-1 overall.
The Hawks are back in action Sunday, Dec. 9 against Lorain County Community College at 3 p.m. in the Student Center Multiplex.
Wyatt Carder is a junior majoring in sports administration at Ohio University. He is currently completing an internship with the Hocking College athletic department.
