The San Jose City College men’s basketball team won its fifth straight game and moved closer to first place in the Coast Conference’s South Division by beating the Cabrillo College Seahawks 88-61.

The victory at SJCC on Wednesday, Feb. 9, left the Jaguars at 16-7 overall, 8-2 in the conference. Cabrillo fell to 18-7 and 9-1.

The leading scorers for the Jaguars were Rodney Black, who led in the points category with 24, Demireius Owens had an outstanding game with 19 points, and Shaheed Young had 14 points.

“We needed this win,” Black said. “I got ready and coach gave a great speech before the game, and the players came together and I was ready to fly.”

The Jaguars took a 21-10 lead with 12 minutes to play in the first half. Within 13 minutes of the game, the Jaguars had obtained a 20-point lead. Led by Black, the Jaguars were off and running at the end of the first 20 minutes.

The Jaguars displayed smart decision-making, toughness and determination throughout the first half and led 53-25 at halftime. Due to unselfish play and focus on the Jaguars, they began to open the lead up to 30 points with 10 minutes remaining in the game. The Seahawks’ frustration boiled over, leading to ejections of players from both teams. After the emotions settled, the Jaguars coasted throughout the remainder of the game.

“We played excellent, best game we played so far this season,” said the Jaguars’ Shaheed Young.

The Jaguars’ next game will be Friday Feb. 18, against the Gavilan College Rams. Tipoff begins at 7 p.m. at Gavilan. Demitrius Owens commented on the team wins, saying all they need to do is “continue to play and keep working hard.”