BULLDOG MEN’S BASKETBALL GO 3-2 OVER BREAK
January 4, 2011

Bellevue men traveled to Blue Mountain CC in Pendleton, OR, to take part in the BMCC Crossover Tournament Dec. 17-19, hoping to shake off the loss to Yakima the previous week. The first game matched the Bulldogs against a tough Clackamas team that roared out to an 18-point lead by half time, while Bellevue was still trying to get their footing. Despite a great second-half effort and double-digit scoring by starters Cedric Clarington (14) and Brad Valentine (12), it wasn’t enough and Bellevue lost by a score 65-82.

By Saturday, the Bulldogs upped their game significantly in a face-off against West Division rival Green River. Clearing more than 83% of their free throws in the first half, almost every Bellevue player scored, with four Bulldogs again netting double-digits, led by freshman Rex Nelson with a game-high 21 points, Clarington knocking in 20, followed by sophomore Antonio Gonzalez with 15, and Valentine at 11. Final score notched a “W” for Bellevue, 93-78.

On Sunday, in the game for 4th place trophy, Bellevue played host Blue Mountain. Gonzalez turned on the juice for the Bulldogs, hitting his own double-double with 12 points, and 10 rebounds. By the time the final buzzer sounded, Bellevue wrapped up a tidy 85-64 win over the Timberwolves. Malcholm Love led Bellevue scoring with 19 points, with Jonathan Humphrie, Valentine, and Clarington each netting 12. Clarington was named to the All-Tournament Team for his consistent scoring over the weekend.

Returning back to the Puget Sound area, a somewhat tired Bellevue men’s team took on Highline at the ShoWare Center on Wednesday, Dec. 22. Basically, trading basket-for-basket during the first half, the Bulldogs and Dolphins went into the locker rooms with a 30-30 tie. Despite the contributions of Nelson with 15 points and Daniel Simon’s 10, Bellevue wasn’t able to rustle up enough nets, and ended up losing to Shoreline 59-52.

Wednesday, Dec. 29, the Bulldogs shook off their holiday ho-hum and went after the South Puget Sound Clippers team with a vengeance, taking them down with a final score of 105-62. Three of the five Bellevue starters scored nearly half of the Bulldogs points: Nelson hit 22, followed by 13 each for Simon and Dallas Searles. Coming off the bench to contribute were Love (16), Steve Downs (15), and Skyler Stillwell (10). This win closes out pre-season play for Bellevue men with a 5-4 record.

Next up, Bellevue men host  Shoreline (7-3 overall pre-season) for the North Division league opener Wednesday, Jan. 5, at 7:30 p.m.

Please visit the BC Athletics website http://bellevuecollege.edu/athletics/ for additional team information. For complete standings, coaches’ polls and up-to-the-minute results go to http://nwaacc.org

Admission to all Bellevue College men’s and women’s home games is FREE to students, staff and faculty. Please come and support our outstanding student-athletes.