The Voice - Student Newspaper

Fite, Gauchos run over Roughriders

By Matt Petersen
Sports Editor, The VOICE

Thanks to its Swiss-army array of weapons and a quickfire offense, Glendale Gauchos' basketball has hit the ground running.

The Gauchos (3-1 ACCAC, 6-2 overall) won their fourth game in five tries last Wednesday, holding on to down the Yavapai Roughriders 96-88.

Six-foot-seven sophomore Lance Fite led the Gauchos with 20 points, 14 rebounds and 4 steals. Forward Momicillo Latinovic (17 points) and guard Cameron Cacciatore (16 points) combined to nail eight of Glendale's 12 3-pointers in the game.

"We pride ourselves on running and shooting the ball well," Fite said. "That just goes to show everyone on the team can shoot."

The show wasted no time early on, as nine of the Gauchos' first 13 points came from 3-point shooting. Despite the frenetic pace they tried to instill upon the game, the Roughriders kept the game close, leading 28-26 with 10:00 left in the first half.

Then Fite and the Gauchos made their move.

Fite's interior defense fed Glendale's fastbreak. Easy baskets and three Cacciatore 3-pointers totaled a 19-2 run, and at the half, Glendale led 51-40.

The early portion of the second half belonged to Latinovic. The six-foot-five freshman went on a 9-0 run by himself from 3-point range, pushing Glendale's lead to 17.

The effort was almost wasted, however. Yavapai went on an 8-0 run, and then kept chipping away, continuing a disturbing early-season trend of the Gauchos giving up big leads in the second half.

With 2:19 remaining, the Glendale's lead had narrowed to an 85-81 margin.

"We didn't rotate real well from the weak side, and we'll need to address that," coach Dave Hodges noted.

Glendale responded after a timeout. Fite scored in the post, guard Mark Celaya had a steal and layup and Cacciatore scored, totaling a 6-0 run that sealed the game for Glendale.

The Gauchos avoided a collapse similar to their loss to Phoenix College three weeks ago, where they lead by 21 at one point, only to lose, 91-84.

"We just couldn't turn the ball over," Fite said. "That's what it comes down to. Guys getting stops and not turning the ball over."

The Gauchos will test that resolve tonight against the Mesa Thunderbirds, who were 4-1 before the issue went to print.