The Virginia Peninsula Community College men’s basketball team suffered two losses last week, snapping a five-game winning streak. The Gators (7-3) had won each game on their streak by nine points or more.
On Dec. 14, the Gators traveled just a few miles down the road to face The Apprentice School in Newport News, falling 70-58 in a noisy and packed gym. Against the Builders (6-2), the Gators had four players share team-high honors with 11 points, but shot 36.9% from the floor and 50% from the free throw line. They made 3 of 16 3-pointers and committed 15 turnovers. They held their own on the boards, getting outrebounded just 40-39. The Builders, who shot 46% from the field and 90% from the line, were led by Adrion Wall with 20 points, including his 1,000th career point.
Keshaun Johnson (Nansemond River High School/Suffolk) had a double-double for the Gators with 11 points and 11 rebounds. Daytwan Johnson (Booker T. Washington/Norfolk) followed with 11 points and eight rebounds. D’Cameron Haynes (Munford HS/Memphis, Tenn.) and Jakobe Reed (Woodside/Hampton) also scored 11 points for the Gators. Sincere Moore (Matoaca High School/Chesterfield) chipped in with eight points and eight rebounds.
The Gators scored the first two points of the game, but the Builders held a 26-19 lead with just more than five minutes left in the half. After the Gators closed to 26-25, Apprentice went on an 8-0 run for a 34-25 lead at the break.
In the second half, the Builders increased their lead to 13 within the first minute, but the Gators slowly got back in the game. They used a 17-8 run to close to 46-42 with 11:37 left and trailed by just five (56-51) at the 6:19 mark. However, the hosts answered with a 7-0 run for a 63-51 lead with 4:29 remaining.
“We played hard,” said coach Chris Moore.
Three days before the Apprentice game, the Gators’ winning streak ended with a 77-63 loss at Bryant & Stratton in Virginia Beach. VPCC trailed 40-29 at halftime and was outscored 37-34 in the second half.
The Gators have a two-game homestand – Dec. 18 against Gaston College (Dallas, N.C.) and Dec. 20 against Monroe University of the Bronx – before taking a break for the holidays. Both games are at the SafeHaven Empowerment Center on Thorncliff Drive in Newport News.