Tough Second Half Hurts Wildcats in 76-65 Loss

Monrovia’s men’s varsity basketball team loses second league contest to San Marino

After a disappointing 10-point loss to Temple City last Wednesday, which began their Rio Hondo league play portion of the season, the Wildcats had a chance to respond on the road against the San Marino Titans with hopes of acquiring their first league win and their 10th win overall.

The Titans began their league play with a loss also, as they were conquered by La Cañada by a whopping 28 points. Both teams were seeking redemption, and their aggressiveness and passion were shown directly following the tipoff.

The first quarter was face-paced for both teams, and the scoring continued back and forth. Both San Marino and Monrovia were effectively shooting the basketball early, and when the first quarter ended it was a close 21-19 lead for the Titans. 

As for Monrovia, they played one of their strongest quarters of basketball so far this season in the second eight-minute interval. During that quarter not only did they move the ball splendidly and found open baskets consistently, but they also played excellent defense and took advantage of the Titans’ mistakes. The Wildcats outscored their opponents 20-13, and they entered halftime with a 39-34 lead.

With confidence on their side, certainly, the Wildcats felt confident that they could escape enemy territory with the victory. Unfortunately, their second half did not mimic the success that they experienced in that second quarter. Instead, momentum shifted to the Titans.

In the third quarter, Monrovia struggled exceptionally in terms of scoring the basketball. They were barely able to get past double-digits in scoring, as by the end of the period they had scored an unimpressive 10 points. As for San Marino, they had much better luck shooting and they outscored the Wildcats by 10 points in that quarter, accumulating 20. Meaning Monrovia’s lead was lost, and now San Marino held a five-point lead heading into the final quarter of play.

San Marino continued to impress offensively in the final quarter, and they had their best scoring total when it mattered most as they put 22 more points on the board in the final 12 minutes. And while the Wildcats put up a resilient effort, the game eventually fell out of their reach. They were sent to the bus and traveled back home with a 76-65 defeat.

The Wildcats will continue their regular season play against La Cañada, who has impressed in league play so far after winning two straight games by a combined score of 126-86. The contest will be hosted in Monrovia on Wednesday, Jan. 15 with tipoff occurring at 7 p.m.

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