Posted: Jan 18, 2026
Cougar Men's Basketball Fends off Glendale CC in 82-78 Victory
Glendale Community College
(14-5, 5-3)
78
South Mountain Community College
(16-3, 6-2)
82
| Final | 1 | 2 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Glendale Community College (14-5, 5-3) | 36 | 42 | 78 |
|
South Mountain Community College (16-3, 6-2) | 38 | 44 | 82 |
PHOENIX ---
The South Mountain Community College men's basketball team (16-3, 6-2 ACCAC Division II) defeated Glendale CC 82-78 in an ACCAC Division II contest at the SMCC Gym on Saturday, Jan. 17. The Cougars built upon a two-point halftime lead to post a 16-point advantage with less than eight minutes to play, but the Gauchos scratched and clawed their way back into the contest and eventually cut it down to three with less 10 seconds. However, the Cougars got a crucial free throw to make it a two-possession game and forced a turnover on the ensuing possession to seal the victory.
"It felt good to get back on the winning track after dropping our last game, but we have to get better at closing games," said SMCC head coach Cory Hoff. "To win by four after being up 16 points in the second half isn't our standard. The last seven minutes of the game weren't good enough defensively. It was good to see four guys in double figures. I thought Semajay and Devone did some good things for us offensively and on the glass. This conference is really tough, so we will take wins however we can. We now have a tough two-game stretch on the road, where we need to be tougher to come home with wins."
Freshman Semajay James led SMCC with a season-high 21 points, finishing 8 of 12 from the floor in 25 minutes off the bench. He added six rebounds and an assist in the victory. The performance was James' fifth in double figures, and he posted eight more points than his previous season-best.
Freshman Devone Pless also scored a season-high, posting 16 points on 7 of 11 shooting. He also had seven rebounds, four assists, and a steal in 32 minutes. Pless has finished in double figures five times this season.
Freshman Travis Vasquez produced 15 points, four assists, three rebounds, and a block in 32 minutes. He has reached double figures in 12 games this season and knocked down two 3-pointers in Saturday's victory.
Sophomore Blake Carabio was the fourth and final Cougar to reach double figures, recording 12 points, three rebounds, and two steals in 18 minutes. Carabio has finished in double-figures a team-high 14 times this season and also had two 3-pointers Saturday.
Freshman Jadden Jones led SMCC with eight rebounds in 30 minutes off the bench. He added seven points, two steals, and two assists. Freshman I'yar Shadowvine tied for the team lead with four assists and added seven points, three rebounds, and three steals in 35 minutes.
The Cougars out-rebounded the Gauchos 41-33 and got 17 second-chance points from 15 offensive rebounds. SMCC also had 44 points in the paint and 14 points off 18 GCC turnovers.
SMCC shot 46.2 percent (30 of 65) from the field and made 17 of 25 free throws (68 percent). The Cougars added 15 assists, nine steals, and two blocks in the win.
The win was an important one as SMCC takes the season series and secures a tiebreaker over GCC in the final standings.
