ARBUCKLE >> Poor execution by Middletown and Pierce’s height advantage didn’t serve the visiting Mustangs well on Thursday night as they fell 61-40 to the Bears in the winner’s semifinal round of the Pierce Basketball Tournament.
Middletown’s varsity boys are now 1-1 in tournament action. They play Colusa tonight at 6 p.m. in the third-place game.
“They (Bears) had a real athletic big guy, like 6-6, and another big guy who was pretty good,” Middletown coach G.J. Rockwell said. “We didn’t play well at all. They really beat us up on the boards. We looked good in spurts, but that’s about it.”
Pierce had a 15-6 lead after one quarter and a 31-18 halftime advantage.
Luke Holt’s 12 points paced the Mustangs, Isaiah Moore added nine and Ricardo Chaires had eight.
In the tournament’s junior varsity boys bracket, Middletown beat East Nicolaus 61-46 to earn a spot in today’s championship game against Colusa at 4:30 p.m.
Andres Cervantes led a balanced Middletown attack with 16 points, Noah Brown added 11, Keegan Cutting had nine, and both Nash Field and Samuel Cervantes finished with eight apiece.
The Mustangs are 2-0 on the season.
