TThe top-ranked Mt. Hood Community College men’s basketball team won their twelfth straight game Wednesday, defeating the Clackamas Community College Cougars 84-68 in front of a raucous crowd of nearly 600 in the MHCC gym.

The NWAACC/Horizon Air Coaches Poll, released Friday, Jan. 7, had the Saints (14-1, 3-0) ranked first and the Cougars (13-3, 1-2) ranked second. This gave the game an electric atmosphere even though the Saints controlled the game from the start and outplayed the Cougars in every aspect of the game. They never trailed and led by as many as 20 in the second half.

Saints head coach Rob Nielson said, “They’re a good team but we felt if we kept at them defensively we could make some runs. We knew that they wanted to slow us down, so our goal was just to set the tempo.”

Nielson said one of the Saints greatest strengths is versatility. They are an atheletic team that can play many different styles. The Saints are at their best though, according to the coach, when the game speeds up. “When we get running up and down and hitting threes, we are really good,” said Nielson.

The Saints were led in scoring and rebounding by forward Scott Zea with 21 points and 14 rebounds. Zea thrilled the crowd in the second half with a thunderous alley-oop dunk on a pass from guard Gregg Barlow, who finished with 20 points, four assists, three blocked shots and two steals. Nileson said, “He (Zea) is so athletic, so versatile, that we can play him anywhere. When he and Gregg (Barlow) and Jamal (Cooke) are out there together, they can really make things happen.”

Barlow got a taste of how Southern Division teams will play him this year in the second half. The Cougars were very concerned with guarding Barlow, often double-teaming him, and also very physical. The physical defense of Clackamas guard Anthony Mink clearly frustrated Barlow. With three minutes left in the game, the frustration boiled over and Barlow sent Mink flying across the lane with a left elbow to the face. Barlow was whistled for an intentional foul and taken out of the game for a moment, but returned refocused to finish the game.

Nielson said that teams know how important Barlow is to the Saints and will concentrate on disrupting his game all year. The challenge for Barlow will be to keep his head in the game and find other ways to contribute.

“If Gregg can create for other people and develop other parts of his game, this will make him better in the long run,” said the coach. “He’s got to understand that other teams are going to work to stop him, and play through it.”

The Saints host Umpqua Community College Saturday night in a rematch of the Umpqua Crossover Tournament Championship. The Saints won that game 65-63. “The game was very close, and that will give them some confidence against us,” said Nielson. “They know that they can play with us.”

“The South is strong this year. Teams are really beating up on each other. Being ranked number one, teams are coming out looking to knock us off every night.”