D’Amato’s Big Day Carries Warriors Past Imperial Valley

TORRANCE, Calif. --- Massimo D'Amato had the best game of his young career as El Camino College scored an 82-77 victory over Imperial Valley Friday afternoon at the ECC Gymnasium.

D'Amato scored a career best 33 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to lead the Warriors (1-6) past Imperial Valley (0-6). The freshman shot 12-for-20 from the field and 4-of-6 from beyond the arc.

Mauricio Cruz added 13 points and four steals and Mattias Sjolin added 10 points and 10 boards in the victory.

For Imperial Valley, Shedrick Lockridge scored 36 points to lead all scorers with Matthew Montalvo adding 15 points and Tavontae Carruthers scoring 13 in the loss.

The Warriors trailed by eight at halftime but outscored their opponent 47-34 in the second half to score the comeback win. The teams were tied four times and traded the lead twice on Friday but the Warriors attacked the inside relentlessly, scoring a 44-18 edge in paint points.

The Warriors also had a 19-6 edge in offensive rebounds which translated to a 20-0 advantage in second-chance points.

The Warriors will return to action on Wednesday to face L.A Pierce in the first of a four-game road stretch. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m.