Armstead’s Big Game Leads Warriors to Title Game at Skip Robinson Classic

PASADENA, Calif. – For the second straight game, El Camino College used a big second half to turn a close game into a double-digit victory with a 114-99 win over L.A. Valley Friday evening in the semifinals of the Skip Robinson Classic.

With the win, the Warriors (2-3) will await the winner of the Santiago Canyon-L.A. Southwest game in the finals of the tournament Saturday at 3 p.m.

Isiah Armstead led the Warriors with 26 points on 7-for-18 shooting in 22 minutes of action. He hit three 3-pointers and flirted with a triple-double with 11 rebounds and seven assists on the night. Justin Reyes added 17 points with five makes from beyond the arc and Troy Biglow dropped 16 points in just 11 minutes of action, shooting 60 percent from the field.

Christian Hodge led the Monarchs with a double-double, leading all scorers with 28 points while grabbing 15 rebounds. Dejwan Walker added a double-double of his own with 16 points and 12 boards.

The Warriors inflicted their high-pace game on another opponent on Friday, forcing 38 turnovers while recording 20 steals including four from Ricky Bryant. They also hit 19 3-pointers on the night while the Monarchs attempted 13, hitting just three from distance.

The teams were tied four times and traded the lead on nine occasions but it was a 20-4 scoring run that turned a five-point deficit into a double-digit lead for the Warriors with 10:37 remaining in the game. It was the first double digit lead for the Warriors in the game and the first since the Monarchs led 32-22 with 10:45 left in the first half.

The Warriors trailed 63-58 with 15:33 left in the second half before Bohanon Rankins drained a 3-pointer to ignite the run. Armstead capped things off with a 3-pointer of his own to make it 78-67 in favor of ECC and they never looked back.