Ashley Whisler puts up a shot in the key against Cypress. Whisler scored 15 points in the Dons 84-66 loss to the Chargers. (Photo courtesy of TonyMcAndrew)
Ashley Whisler puts up a shot in the key against Cypress. Whisler scored 15 points in the Dons 84-66 loss to the Chargers. (Photo courtesy of TonyMcAndrew)
January 30, 2014

Dons Surrender Halftime Lead in 84-66 Loss to Cypress College

The Dons seemed headed for a victory but Cypress' big second half doomed SAC in the conference loss.

Box Score

SANTA ANA - After leading by as many as 13 points late in the first half, the Dons fell to visiting Cypress College 84-66 as the Chargers outscored SAC 51-27 in the second half. The loss drops the Dons to 12-10 overall and 2-4 in conference while Cypress improves to 14-9 and 5-1.

The Dons latest 13-point lead came on a three-point play with 3:19 left when Ashley Whisler was fouled on a made layup before converting the free throw, making the score 37-24. It was the second time the Dons led by as many as 13 points, just a minute earlier Marissa Maugaotega converted a similar three-point play for the Dons.

But the Chargers started chipping away at the Dons lead, getting it down to just six points at the half at 39-33. Cypress continued to close in on the Dons in the second half before tying the game at 51-51 with 9:22 left. The Chargers then used a 9-0 run to establish a 60-51 lead with 7:42 left.

The closest the Dons would get after that was seven points before Cypress established a 10-point lead at 69-59 with 3:41 left. The Chargers would then pull away to the 18-point victory.

Jazmine Johnson led the Dons in scoring with 20 points followed by 15 points from Ashley Whisler. The pair would be the only two Dons scorers in double digits.