Rebounds, Turnovers Add Up to Victory for Harbor, 60-55

Rebounding and turnovers called the shots Wednesday at Rio Hondo College as Rio Hondo’s 26 giveaways and Harbor’s overwhelming rebounding edge lifted the Seahawks to a much-needed 60-55 victory.

Harbor’s top scorer, Mark Hill, a product of Locke High, did not play for personal reasons. The Seahawks also did not have Terry Porter, who missed his ride, according to Co-Coach Ken Curry.

The win, Harbor’s first in three games, gave the Seahawks a 6-2 record in the Southern California Athletic Conference, 15-8 overall. Rio Hondo dropped to 3-4 and 13-12.

Ironically, it was Harbor’s carelessness that set the tempo through the first 11 minutes of the game before the Seahawks cashed in on the Roadrunners’ nine second-half turnovers.

Rio Hondo raced to a 16-4 lead with 12:25 to go in the first half. But the Roadrunners lost ground under the boards and Harbor pulled ahead, 30-29, on Tolbert Routt’s layup off a feed from Mike Thompson at the 2:56 mark.

Harbor fell behind, 48-40, when Chris Allen canned a five-foot jump shot for Rio Hondo with 12:09 remaining in the game. A nine-minute Roadrunner dry spell then allowed Harbor go on a 12-5 run and take the lead at 54-53.

The lead changed once more before Harbor clinched it as Jerome Hendrix converted both ends of a one-and-one free-throw opportunity and Rio Hondo missed three consecutive three-pointers.

Hendrix led all scorers with 16 points. Harbor’s Bruce Turner added 13.

Sophomore Darrin Posey led the Roadrunners with 11 and Anthony Rubio had 10.

Harbor, ranked 14th in the state and seventh in the Southland, extended its 1988 mark against Rio Hondo to 3-0.

The Seahawks play host to Marymount Palos Verdes College on Friday at 7:30 p.m.