Rams hold off Hawks rally, improve to 21-1

By Bontã Hill
The Guardsman

The  City College men’s basketball team withstood Las Positas’ hot  second-half shooting and won their 16th straight game by outlasting  their Coast Conference North foes 81-72 at the Ocean campus Wellness  Center, Jan. 21.

The  Rams faced adversity for the first time in weeks as the Hawks were  within five points, 74-69, with 1:47 left in the game. That was as close  as Las Positas would get. City College hit their free throws in the  final minute to improve to (21-1, 6-0).

Collin  Chiverton scored 19 points, all in the first half, and Ivan Dorsey  dropped in 16, vaulting the Rams through the first half of the  conference schedule undefeated.

Still,  City College head coach Justin Labagh knows his team can get a lot  better and feels his own team is its toughest opponent.

“The  only guys that are going to beat this team are the guys in our locker  room,” Labagh said. “Once they figure out that they could be their own  worst enemy, it’s going to be tough to beat us.”

In  the first half, Chiverton and Dorsey were lights out from beyond the  arc and carried the Rams to a 16-point halftime lead, 44-28.

Chiverton  sank four three-pointers in the half, and Dorsey dropped in three of  his own, including a three-pointer at the halftime buzzer.

“It  was a team effort,” Dorsey said. “We just moved the ball around, got  the ball in the post, they passed it back out to me and I just knocked  down the open shot.”

It  seemed the Rams would cruise into their 21st win of the season when  they jumped ahead 56-36, but the Hawks wouldn’t go back home to  Livermore without a fight.

Down  20, Las Positas went on a tear from the three-point line, making seven  in the second half as they kept the Rams’ faithful on edge.

Guard  Dwight Abad led Las Positas with 15 points, including three from beyond  the arc, and forward Brandon Tatum added 14, but they were unable to  climb back from the double-digit deficit.

“Against  a good team like [City College], we can’t turn the ball over the way we  did,” Las Positas head coach Tony Costello said. “They hit tough shots  and to their credit, they made them. They capitalized on our mistakes  and that was the bottom line.”

After  winning a grueling game against Chabot College Wednesday night and  holding on for the victory against Las Positas, the Rams will have a  week off before they play Foothill College Jan. 28 at 7 p.m. in the  Wellness Center.

Despite  giving up most of their 20-point lead, Labagh didn’t dwell on the  negatives from the game, and afterward reflected on his team going  through the first round of conference play undefeated.

“The  positives are that we went through league, we’re 6-0, and everybody has  to chase us down,” Labagh said. “That’s what we wanted to do, and  that’s what we got done tonight.”