Bellevue College men’s basketball rounded out pre-season play with two match-ups against perennially strong NWAACC programs. On Thursday, Dec. 20, the Bulldogs traveled to Yakima Valley Community College to take on the East Region Yaks. Yakima Valley opened the season as the number-one ranked team in the NWAACC Coaches Poll. Bellevue came out ready to play against the highly ranked Yaks and took an early lead that would balloon to as much as 13 early in the second half. However, the Yaks would not go away and fought their way back into the game with pressure defense. Yakima Valley’s press forced 20 turnovers on the night from the Bulldogs and was the difference in the game. Bellevue shot only 37% in the second half and saw their early lead turn into a 95-85 loss. Bellevue was led by sophomore guards Marcus Tibbs and Andrew Squiers. Tibbs scored 22 points, grabbed seven rebounds, had three steals and dished out four assists in a tremendous all-around offensive game. Squiers
led the team in scoring and rebounding with 23 points and nine rebounds. Sophomore Jeff Kimmel added 17 points while freshman Daniel Greer scored 10 points to round out the double-digit scorers.
The loss to Yakima Valley marked the second time on the year that the Bulldogs had a two-game losing streak. The Bulldogs looked to stop their streak at two losses on Saturday, Dec. 29, with a visit from Highline Community College. Bellevue seemed to learn their lesson from the Yakima Valley loss by taking an early lead, but this time not looking back. Bellevue started the game out hot from outside as Greer, Tibbs, and Squiers all hit from long range. Freshmen AJ Holloway and Alex Cameron came in off the bench and kept the hot shooting going with three-pointers of their own. But it was the Bellevue defense that was the real star of the game. The Bulldogs held Highline to just 17 field goals on the night leading to a 68-46 victory. Bellevue had a balanced attack on offense led by Tibbs with 14 points; Squiers and Greer added 12 and 11 points, respectively. Reggie Clinton led the team with six rebounds and Tyler Stracener scored eight points.
Bellevue heads into North Region play with an 8-4 record. They open league hosting Olympic College on Saturday, Jan. 5 at 6pm.
Last Updated November 1, 2013
