Freshman point guard
Deondre Russ came off the bench to score a team high 14 points Sunday morning as SVC won its seventh straight game defeating Tacoma Community College 75-72.
Russ was 6-8 from the field and grabbed 5 rebounds while dishing out 2 assists to lead Skagit Valley (8-1) to the Championship of the Pirate Classic. The Cardinals were 2-0 on the weekend while Peninsula, Portland, and Tacoma all went 1-1.
"This team really has a next-man-up mentality" said Coach Veltri. "Saturday night Carmonte scored 21 and played well defensively…Sunday was Deondre's day…It is great to have this kind of depth especially with a young team." Veltri added.
In their nine games this season, the Cardinals have had five different players lead them in scoring. "This team is very unselfish…which should make us hard to prepare for as we get to league play next month." Said Coach Veltri.
The Cardinals were much more aggressive driving to the basket in the second half Sunday. SVC scored 41 points and got to the foul line 14 times after the break. "I felt that we were settling for perimeter jumpers too much in the first half…we liked some of the match-ups we had and the guys did a better job of taking advantage of those match-ups after the half." Veltri added.
The Cardinals now have a week off before they head to Umpqua Community College for the NWAC Crossover, December 14-16.
