Bellevue College men’s basketball fought back on several occasions in a close battle but ended up falling just short in a 70-68 loss to visiting Peninsula at Courter Family Athletic Pavilion. The Bulldogs closed the gap to within one or two points on six different occasions in the second half, but Peninsula’s offense answered on following possessions each time to prevent the ‘dogs from leapfrogging over the Pirates for any chance of a win.
Down by as much as ten in the second half, Cooper Brown nailed a three pointer with 14 seconds remaining to put BC within one at 69-68. After an intentional foul to put Peninsula’s Jaidon Blackmon to the line, the Bulldogs had a chance as Blackmon made only one of two attempts. A last second shot fell short as time expired.
In an evenly played game across the board statistically, Bellevue’s Darek Usitalo led the efforts with one of his top performances of the season, scoring 27 points on 10-for-13 shooting from the field, seven-for-10 from the free throw line, and nine rebounds; all team-highs. Bellevue goes to 2-1 in region play, and 7-11 overall. They travel to Whatcom this Sat. Jan. 18 for a 4 p.m. tipoff against the Orcas.
Last Updated January 16, 2025
