San Diego, CA (Men’s Basketball) -- For the second season in a row, the Fighting Owls have won the Knight’s Invitational hosted by San Diego City College. Citrus beat the host team in the championship game, knocking off the Knight’s 99-93 on Sunday night.
After picking up double-digit victories in the first two rounds (108-75 over Grossmont; 94-69 over Palomar), the Fighting Owls were tested on Sunday night despite opening the game on a 21-8 run and a 13-point lead after a jumper by sophomore Steven Bennett. Citrus would push their lead to as large as 17 points at the nine minute mark, before settling in for a 10 point lead at the half.
In the second half, Citrus continued to build on their lead, making the lead 18 points after a trey from freshman Jose Rivera with just over 12 minutes to play in the game. Form there San Diego began to battle back, slowing chipping away at the Citrus lead, and eventually pulling to within three points, when City’s Daniel Valdez hit a three-pointer that made the score 93-96 with 56 seconds to play.
After that, the Citrus defense settled down, forcing the Knight’s in to three straight missed shots, while sophomore Justin Johnson nailed three of four free-throw attempts down the stretch to preserve the victory and their second straight Knight’s Invitational Championship.
In the win, Citrus was led by Rivera, who came off the bench to pour in 24 points. Johnson would add 21 more, while Troy Payne chipped in with 11 points and a game high 15 rebounds. For their efforts, Payne was named Tournament MVP, while Johnson, Rivera and sophomore Kelly Johnson were named to the All-Tournament team.
The Fighting Owls will continue their 2008 schedule this week as they play host to two of Southern California’s best teams. Citrus’ first game will be against Pasadena City College (4-1), currently ranked 9th in the state, on Thursday night, followed by a Friday night tilt with College of the Desert (4-1). Both games are scheduled for a 7:00 PM tip-off.
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