Santa Clarita, CA- When coming off as big of a win as the Firestorm had last night, the biggest fear could be overlooking the next opponent. The Firestorm (12-1) made it clear tonight early and often that this wouldn't be the case.

Behind a nearly perfect shooting night for Senior Forward Chris Sterling, total domination on the boards, and an enthusiastic defensive approach, the Firestorm took care of the University of California Merced Bobcats (1-11) 82-50. After the Bobcats hit back to back three pointers early to make the game 7-6, the Firestorm responded with an 11-2 run and essentially ended any hope the Bobcats had of staying in the game.

The three-ball played a big role in the Firestorm running away with this one, as they hit 11 of them on the night. Unselfish play was another big key to the game tonight, as 11 different players scored for the Firestorm. With Senior Guard Shy McClelland leading with seven assists, the Firestorm made it a habit of keeping the Bobcats on the run with quick, sharp passes.

Said Coach Jeff Rutter, "I was impressed with how unselfish we were tonight, the ball moved well and we had some nice extra passes setting up teammates."

As the game went on, the Firestorm never let up on the Bobcats as they desperately looked for any avenue to get back into the game. Consistently pestering them all night, the Firestorm forced 15 turnovers (for 24 points) and held the Bobcats to just 35% shooting on the night. McClelland led the charge with five steals on the night in what was another strong performance from him defensively.  

In the game, the Firestorm used a 40-26 rebounding edge to dominate the paint and take away many second chance opportunities for the Bobcats. Led by Sterling and the big body of Sophomore Forward Patson Siame, the Firestorm held one of their largest rebounding differences of the season.

The second half saw the Firestorm once again come out firing as they opened the half on a 25-8 run that extended to the midway point of the half. Behind three-pointers from Sterling and Senior Guard Mishima Gray, the Firestorm made it known that they had very little intention of letting up. Coming off a stretch of five games that has seen the Firestorm win by an average of 6.8 points, this game might have provided some fans a chance to breath easy a little bit.

Said Rutter, "We played well tonight, we played hard and were able to sustain our effort for most of the game. It's been a nice stretch of games for us as we head into for conference play."

With the exception of a return trip to Shepard University later in the season, this game concludes non-conference play. The Firestorm have certainly done plenty in recent weeks to ease any concerns people had about this team after their conference opening loss to Masters University. In recent weeks they have shown they are capable of winning in many different ways, and there is no reason to think this won't continue as Golden State Athletic Conference play cranks up.

Game Notes

• This is the fifth time this season the Firestorm have held their opponent under 55 points
• For the fifth consecutive game, the Firestorm have shot more free throws than their opponent
• Chris Sterling's 90% shooting percentage tonight was the highest of his career, his only miss (9-10) was a deep three-pointer

Next Up: The Firestorm will jump head first into GSAC play with a home match up against the  #9 Westmont Warriors (Tuesday January 3rd, 7:30 pm). The game has been announced as "High School Night @ Fultz." All high school students receive free admission and are invited to sit in the Firestorm Frenzies section for the game!