Vixon’s Game-Winner Seals Dubs’ Comeback Win

By Brandon Petersen

It had been a minute for Dera Vixon, but that one-of-a-kind magic returned for the junior guard out of Antioch – OC by way of the East Bay – and just like back in the day, Vixon ended it with a game-winner, this time for the Westcliff men's basketball team Wednesday night at JLAW.

With seven ticks left and the game tied, the Warriors started on the baseline and found Vixon at midcourt. He did the rest, zig-zagging through traffic and pulling up at the elbow for a tear-drop floater that danced on the rim before dropping with 1.3 left.

A few short moments later, the Dubs moved to .500 with an 82-80 overtime win over Thompson River University.

"First home game, it was exciting to see the fans – guys have been on the road for so many other games, and they had their own families in the crowd," Westcliff head coach Jerred Cook said. "I'm not excited about our performance, but there was a lot to learn from. And you'd much rather learn those lessons in a win than a loss."

The comeback is the most thrilling way to obtain victory.

But inherent in the comeback – the bitter pill that makes it a double-edged sword – is that to come from behind, you must first find yourself behind.

To comeback from a large deficit, like the Warriors were staring down 10 back with five minutes left in the second, a team must make mistakes.

The Dubs made plenty of them Wednesday night – 17, to be exact – a minus-seven turnover margin that would kill most teams on most nights.

Meanwhile, the Wolf Pack hit eight threes, while the Warriors went 3-of-19 from range.

It wasn't a surprise the Dubs found themselves down.

Nor was it surprising that when they finally buckled down on defense, they outplayed Thompson River and won the basketball game.

Led by Micaiah Hankins (game-high 23 points), who looked every bit the ice-in-the-veins, stone-cold closer in the moments that meant something, the Warriors locked down.

Hankins hit big shot after big shot, tying the game just before regulation expired, and led a furious defensive effort, coming up with a big-time block in the lane.

Cook was asked what makes Hankins so good when the game is in the balance.

"His pace, his IQ in terms of knowing when to go and when not to, and then when it's winning time and the game is on the line, he's not running from the basketball," Cook answered. "He's actually the calmest guy out there. It gives me a little more confidence in our team to know that when he has the ball in his hand, we can still run something to get a good shot down the stretch."

Hankins wasn't alone, however.

High praise should be heaped on Eric Clark as well, who played 30-plus, and better get used to it, especially if Marques Sales misses time with a shoulder that flared up Wednesday night.

Clark was more special than solid on defense and nearly finished with a double-double at nine and 11. 

Hankins (six rebounds, one assist, two blocks) played 40, and Rayven Turner clocked 36. Turner went for 11 and seven and chipped in a pair of dimes and a steal.

Jeremiah Paulino (three assists) went 4-from-8 from the field and hit a pair of treys to finish with 10.

"The leadership from our point guard down the stretch got us over the top," Cook said. "Key points from Eric Clark, who stepped up big tonight. Obviously, Dera hit the gamer-winner tonight, having only played 10 minutes – guys stepped up.

"We're staying ready. We're trying to find that right group of core guys to consistently do what's being asked.

"We were able to pull out the victory tonight, but credit goes to Thompson River. They played well. Hit eight threes tonight, and kept us at bay, for sure."

The Warriors (3-3) will skip shootaround in the morning after a quick turnaround lands Indiana Tech (RV) at JLAW Thursday night.

Tip is scheduled for 6 pm.