Commodores Come Up Short In Defensive Battle With Owens Express

December 13, 2023 - - The Lorain County Community College men's basketball team fell to Owens Community College in Perrysburg, Ohio Wednesday evening, 69-59. Ice cold shooting from both teams produced defensive standoffs with the Express edging the Commodores in the final minutes of the second half. 

The game was the first of three contests LCCC and Owens will play this season.  The second comes on February 14, 2024 inside the Ewing Activities Center Gymnasium and the final match up will be for the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Region XII DIII Championship on February 24, 2024.

Top Commodores

Deonte Benejan (Queens, N.Y./Lorain HS) – 27 points, 5 rebounds, 3 steals

Willie Powell Jr. (Cleveland, Ohio/Bedford HS) – 7 points, 7 rebounds (5 offensive), 2 steals

Jamair Blackmon (Akron, Ohio/Barberton HS) – 7 points, 3 rebounds, 1 steal

Jayden Maxwell (Chicago, Ill./Buchtel CLC) – 13 points, 14 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 assists

Recap

The Commodores (3-9, 1-4) and Express (4-7, 2-3) began the game cold from the field, combining for 9 points over the first six minutes when Willie Powell Jr. finally broke through and got LCCC's first field goal with 13:40 left to play in the first.  With six minutes left in the opening half and the scored tied 16-16, Owens produced a 14-7 run to take a 30-23 lead into the break.

The Commodores shooting woes didn't improve much in the second half but they did begin to hit from long range after going 0-for-5 during the first 20 minutes.  Jamair Blackmon, Austin Copen, Jayden Maxwell all connected for 3-point baskets as LCCC managed to shrink Owens lead to as little as one on multiple occasions but they were unable to take the lead despite keeping the game within arm's reach throughout most of the second half.    Owens began to pull away in the final minutes to secure the win, 69-59.

Notes

• LCCC had 10+ offensive rebounds for the sixth time this season (12)
• Deonte Benejan had his fourth game this season of 25+ points
• Jayden Maxwell had a career-high 14 rebounds
• Abdulaziz Sesay's (Freetown, Sierra Leone, West Africa/Limount College) eight rebounds were a career-high for the sophomore
• The Commodores never led in the contest and the last tie came at 16-16 with 6:26 left in the first half
• The 59 points scored by LCCC were a season-low

Next Up

LCCC will travel to Lakeland Community College (7-0, 1-0) this Saturday to take on the No. 9 (NJCAA DII) Lakeland Lakers.  Tip-off is at noon.