College of Marin Men's Basketball faced Victor Valley at the Foothill Tournament on Friday. It was an up and down game, and although Marin led at halftime, the Rams rallied to take the game 61-54. Garrick Sherrod led the Mariners with 20 points while Derek Morgan added 16 points and 17 rebounds.
The game began on even footing as neither team could gain separation from the other. Marin opened on a run, and Victor Valley followed with a run of their own. The slow paced game did not lend itself to a high scoring affair as Marin took a 26-24 lead into the halftime locker room.
After the break Victor Valley's offense began to take off, while the Mariners' remained grounded. Turnovers and fouls led to Victor Valley getting 13 more shots than the Mariners while they also went to the free throw line 16 times versus 11 for Marin. The result was a second half that saw the Rams outscore the Mariners 37-28 and a final score of 61-54 in favor of Victor Valley.
"Guys battled, just need to crack up the focus during a possession by possession game that is was," said Coach Scott Thom, "We made some mental errors down the stretch."
Freshman guard Garrick Sherrod led the Mariners in scoring with 20 points including a trio of made three pointers. Derek Morgan filled up the stat sheet with 16 points, 17 rebounds, three steals and four blocks, while Eric Mireri had 8 points and five rebounds for the Mariners.
Nathan Clark led Victor Valley with 16 points, one of four starters in double digits for the Rams.
Next up for the Mariners is a matchup with Feather River College in the consolation bracket of the Foothill Tournament at 2:00PM on Saturday, December 9th.