(East Los Angeles College)—The “Madness” has begun, just ask the ELAC Lady Huskies and their Head Coach, Bruce Turner, how it felt to win their 2nd round home court California Community College Athletic Association (CCCAA) playoff game last Saturday against the Cypress Lady Chargers, representatives from the State’s Orange Empire Conference. The Lady Huskies had to get into their highest gear in the final quarter as they overcame a huge 14 point deficit, (46-32). To see how they did it, we invite you to watch the entire game on our YouTube Channel and on our website. Without giving our viewers a full written game summary, we can tell you that the final score was (55-52).

Of Significance.…. The extreme Lady Huskies defensive pressure that was applied to Cypress during the entire 4th quarter. Realizing that their season was on the line and threatened to be ended, Coach Turner rallied his team and players to give their ultimate playing effort to secure the come-from-behind victory…and so they did. Towards the very end of the final quarter, the Lady Huskies finally caught up and went ahead of the Cypress Lady Chargers, (53-52). They added two more free throws in the final seconds to make the official score, (55-52).

Brief Summary: ELAC outscored their opponent in the 4th quarter, (23-6), erasing the 14 point lead Cypress had at the start. This huge offensive burst, coupled with their determined defense, propelled them on to victory, much to the delight of their student body and fans in attendance. Doing much of the heavy lifting on offense for the Lady Huskies were: Sophomore, #23 Jaelynn Curley/13 points, with 6 coming on 2 three-pointers made early in the quarter; Freshman, #3 Adriana Gonzalez/13 points/7 rebounds (5 offensive-2 defensive) and 2 blocks; and Sophomore #10 Jennifer Pool/8 points/4 rebounds/1 assists/2 steals. On defense, Freshman, #24 Citlaly Davalos, was huge with 5 boards/3 assists, and 1 steal. Her 2 three-pointers and 6 badly needed points, couldn’t have come at a better time as she shrunk the Cypress lead to four late in the period. Working hard in her 20 minutes of energetic and consistent play, was the 5’10” Freshman from Fairfax HS, #34 Dominique Godbolt, who scored four points, pulled down 5 rebounds (4 offensive -1 defensive), added 1 assist, and 1 steal to her game stat-line. Not to forget the tremendous effort by starting center, 6’1″ Freshman, #31 Jadis Watson/Lancaster HS, who, in 24 minutes of playing time, scored 5 points, grabbed 13 rebounds (7 defensive-6 offensive), and managed to add 3 assists, 2 steals, and 1 blocked shot to her game totals.

Next Steps: The Lady Huskies now move forward into the 3rd Round this Saturday, March 9th, when they take on their dreaded South Coast Conference rival, the Lady Lancers from Pasadena City College, for the third time this season. ELAC won the first two games. Tip-off at the E-Arena is scheduled for 7 pm.

Note From The Editor: At this time, East L.A. Sports Scene would like to share with all of our viewers and all loyal East L.A. College supporters, a brief resumé of accomplishments by Head Coach, Bruce Turner, now completing his 13th straight year at the helm. In addition, Coach Turner is very proud of his 260 career victories, while assisting many of his players in acquiring scholarships to continue their playing careers at many NCAA D-1 through D-3 schools plus, many NAIA small colleges and universities.

Here are some very impressive Bruce Turner career numbers and stats: SCC Conference Champions, 2016-17; State Coach Of the Year, 2012-15; Best Record 28-3 (2016-17); Most Season Wins (29)-2014-15; Longest win streak (11) 2016-17; (4) Elite Eight Appearances; (1) Final Four Appearance 2014-15; (1) Finals Appearance (2015-16); NCAA Division 1 Transfers (9); Transfer rate to four year colleges/universities – 92%; and (6) consecutive appearances in CCCAA State playoffs. Last, but certainly not least, Coach Turner repeatedly tells all of his supporters that “he’s been abundantly Blessed with the Best Assistant Coaches in the world,” in the persons of Sarai Trinidad, Wilbert Knight, and Leonard Owens.