Vaqueros Catch Fire to Claim 3rd-Place in SBCC Classic

SANTA BARBARA, CA – Aidan Mandel had his third straight All-Tournament-worthy performance and the SBCC men's basketball team (4-9) made it rain from the outside as the Vaqueros claimed the SBCC Classic third-place trophy on Saturday with a 78-57 win over LA Valley (4-8).

HOW IT HAPPENED
Santa Barbara earned its third win in four tries behind a season-high shooting performance, as the team went 53.7 percent from the field and 52.2 percent from the outside while knocking down its most threes (12-23 3FG) of the season.

Freshman forward Aidan Mandel scored 23 points (11-15 FG) on his most efficient shooting day of the year. His three-game SBCC Classic averages of 24 points, nine rebounds, three blocks and two steals per game on 60.1 percent from the field earned him a no-brainer All-Tournament selection.

It was point guard Wilfrid Nado who helped get Santa Barbara out to a good start though. Despite picking up two early fouls, Nado stayed in the game and knocked down his first two three-point attempts.

Guard Truman Teuber had a good spell off the bench midway through the opening half, contributing to a 7-0 SBCC run by scoring five unanswered. LA Valley hung close, but the Vaqueros ended the half strong and Mandel hit a jumper in the final seconds to give them their largest lead yet at 34-27.

It was still a six-point game midway through the second, but with just over nine minutes to go, the home side started pouring it on. Tyler Williams and Nado knocked down threes on back-to-back possessions. Two plays later, Nado hit his fifth triple of the night, putting his team up 64-49 as they game began to blow open.

Nado went on to finish with 19 points on 6-of-10 from the field and 5-for-7 on threes. Guard Trevor Lee was a perfect 3-for-3 from deep on his way to a 13-point, 9-rebound, 5-assist, 3-steal, 2-block stat line.

SBCC CLASSIC ALL-TOURNAMENT
Santa Barbara Northside Optimist Championship Trophy
San Bernardino Valley

Tri-Valley 2nd Place Trophy
Bakersfield

3rd Place Trophy
SBCC

Consolation Trophy
Long Beach

Trish Dupart Memorial MVP
Dominique Daniels (SBVC)

All-Tournament Team
Sebastian Mendoza (SBVC)
Armon Muldrew (SBVC)
Rahmel Davis (Bakersfield)
Aidan Mandel (SBCC)
Lorenzo Marsh (Long Beach)

NEXT UP
The Vaqueros return to action for their first game at the West Valley Holiday Classic next Friday, Dec. 16 to take on tournament host West Valley.