Murphy drops 25 but Aztecs men's basketball fall in tug-of-war with Tohono O'odham CC

The Pima Community College men's basketball team (5-3, 0-1 in ACCAC) played a tough game to open ACCAC conference play on Tuesday at the West Campus gymnasium.

The Aztecs held a slim lead but Tohono O'odham Community College (3-6, 1-0) closed out the final three-and-a-half minutes on a 9-2 run as Pima fell 85-82.

The Aztecs went up 80-76 after sophomore Zach Evans converted on a three-point play with 3:58 remaining but the Jegos went on a 6-0 run in a little over a minute to retake the lead at 82-80.

Sophomore Deion James (Empire HS) missed two free throws with 25 seconds left and Tohono O'odham made 1 for 2 on their next trip to the foul line. Freshman Isaiah Murphy (Cienega HS) went coast-to-coast for a quick basket to make it 83-82 with eight seconds left. The Jegos converted on two free throws and sophomore Emilio Acedo (Salpointe Catholic HS) missed a three-pointer as time expired.

The Aztecs trailed for the entire first half and were down 40-34 at the break. Down 48-42 with 16:09 left in the game, Acedo and Murphy led the way on a 15-4 run to give Pima a 57-52 advantage. Acedo had nine points and Murphy produced six points during that stretch.

Murphy finished the game with a team-high 25 points. He also went 10 for 12 from the free throw line. James had 19 points and nine rebounds. Acedo started the game 0 for 8 from the field but scored all 16 of his points in the second half. Evans contributed with 10 points.

The Aztecs will play their first road conference game next Wednesday, Nov. 30 against Chandler-Gilbert Community College. The game starts at 7:30 p.m.

TOCC     40     45     85
PCC        34     48     82