Women’s Basketball: Pirates outlast Lasers

For 23-year-old Orange Coast College sophomore Sami Little, who is playing again this season after four years on the sideline, muscle memory isn’t as sharp as it was when she was an 18-year-old freshman.

But when it comes to her competitive memory, especially when it comes to playing against Irvine Valley, Little continues to show Laser focus.

Little, who helped the Pirates win three close games against IVC in 2010-11, including two that went overtime, improved to 4-0 against the Lasers on Wednesday. She shared team-high scoring honors with 19, while adding five rebounds, five steals, and some crucial plays at crunch time in a 56-50 Orange Empire Conference triumph.

Little’s steal and subsequent 10-foot bank shot put the unranked Pirates up, 54-50, with 1:35 left, and the hosts held IVC, ranked No. 9 in Southern California, without a field goal over the final 5:33.

Freshman Jenna Rodriguez produced nine of her 19 points in the fourth quarter and added a team-best nine rebounds to help OCC earn the win.

OCC (11-8, 2-1 in conference) remained one game behind conference leading Riverside, three games into an OEC race that figures to be as competitive as the Pirates’ players.

OCC, which rallied from a 20-point deficit to upset No. 7-ranked Cypress in the conference opener, then lost at the buzzer after trailing, 18-2, at Santa Ana on Friday, continued to display the kind of fight that leaves Coach Mike Thornton quietly beaming.

OCC trailed, 39-32, with 2:47 left in the third quarter Wednesday, but finished the period on a 6-1 run to close within 40-38.

A three-point play by Rodriguez pulled the Pirates even at 44-44 with 7:58 left and a Rodriguez layin with 5:10 remaining gave OCC the lead for good in a game that featured 16 lead changes and seven tie scores.

“Every team in our conference is a rival, but for us, this one was special,” Thornton said. “Our kids really wanted it. When we were down last year [5-21, including 2-10 in the OEC], they kicked us pretty good. So, this was a huge win for us and I’m really happy.”

Little echoed her coach’s sentiments about a bounce-back victory that halted OCC’s three-game losing streak against the Lasers (13-6, 1-2), who have now lost two straight after a string of 14 consecutive conference victories dating back to the 2013-14 campaign.

“We really took losing to Santa Ana on a buzzer-beater to heart,” said Little, who netted four of her final six field-goal tries after connecting on just five of her first 15. “I know how competitive coach is with IVC and that brought back memories for me of how badly I want to beat IVC too.”

Little said an altered warm-up routine and a new starting lineup helped OCC avoid a third straight slow start.

“We included more defense that got us moving around more in our pregame to help us transition better into the game and be more focused at the start,” Little said. “And not having a set lineup makes everyone work harder for those starting spots and playing time.”

Thornton inserted former reserves Deanna Fink and Sophia Guzman into the starting five, which was without freshman point guard Chyann Pendergrass, who missed two days of practice with the flu coming off a career-high 25 points that included an 18-point fourth quarter at Santa Ana.

“I think [Fink and Guzman] made a difference with their energy and I think the other kids needed a wake-up call,” Thornton said.

Thornton also praised the strong play of Little and Rodriguez, who accounted for 19 of the Pirates’ final 22 points, including the last 15.

“I thought Sami played a fantastic second half,” Thornton said. “She made some plays on defense, she got to the basket and she finished.

“And then J-Rod took over inside [in the final 11 minutes]. I also thought we played the best defense we’d played all year [holding IVC to 33.3% shooting in the final half].”

Little said the win will help with the lingering discomfort that is now more noticeable following her four-year layoff.

“It’s harder for me to recover than when I was a freshman,” Little said. “When my teammates are usually sore only the next day, I am sometimes sore three days later.”

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Orange Empire Conference

Orange Coast 56, Irvine Valley 50

SCORE BY QUARTERS

IVC – 10 12 18 10 -- 50

OCC – 12 8 18 18 – 56

IVC – Pearson 2, Bryant 9, Casey 22, Coleman 4, Mercado 2, Smit 5, Tidwell-McClure 5, Haynes 1.

3-pt. goals – Casey 5, Tidwell-McClure 1.

Fouled out – None.

Technicals – None.

OCC – Rodriguez 19, Little 19, Lewis 0, Guzman 2, Fink 0, Wu 6, Pendergrass 6, Nunes 4.

3-pt. goals – Little 1, Wu 1.

Fouled out – None.

Technicals – None.