Hancock Men's Basketball Loses WSC Opener at Ventura Despite Mitchell's Double-Double

Trenton Mitchell recorded his first career double-double to lead a trio of Bulldogs in double figures, but the Allan Hancock College men's basketball team fell 77-67 to Ventura in both teams' Western State Conference opener on Saturday. The Bulldogs, who won their final three preseason games, dropped to 13-8 overall and 0-1 in league. The Pirates, the two-time defending league champions, improved to 13-7.

Mitchell came off the bench to lead the Bulldogs with a career-high 13 points and 13 rebounds. The freshman went 5-for-7 from the field, 3-for-4 from the line, and blocked four shots. Four of his rebounds came on the offensive end.

Devin Davis scored 12 points on 4-for-9 shooting overall. He sank 4-of-5 free throws. Freshman guard Glenn Jordan added 10 points. He sank 3-of-13 from the floor. Diego Lucas added eight points, and Javae Lampkins chipped in seven points off the bench for Hancock.

Davis scored the first bucket of the game, but Ventura scored the next seven points to take the lead for good. Ventura built a 29-12 lead with six minutes remaining in the first half and carried a 34-26 lead into halftime. The Bulldogs battled in the second half and climbed to within four points at 71-67 with less than two minutes remaining, but could not get any closer.

Overall, Hancock shot 41 percent (24-for-58) from the floor, and 22 percent (4-for-18) from beyond-the-arc. The Bulldogs sank 65 of their 23 free throws.

John Williams led the Pirates with 24 points, eight rebounds and four steals. Isiah Reyes added 17 points off the bench. He sank 8-of-10 from the free-throw line.

Ventura shot 43 percent from the field and 76 percent from the free-throw line. The Pirates held a 19-8 advantage in points off turnovers.

The Bulldogs have lost their last six meetings with the Pirates.

Hancock returns to action Wednesday, January 17, when the Bulldogs host Moorpark at 7 p.m.