AWC hopes to extend win streak

Arizona Western College’s basketball team may be previewing its future tonight.

The Matadors, who have won their last three games, host Cochise tonight at 7:30 p.m. in a possible conference tournament matchup.

“The further you get in the season, the bigger each game becomes, unless you’re in a position where you’re out of the playoff picture,” AWC coach Kelly Green said. “We can still win the league. There’s seven games left. We’re three back in the loss column.”

Through last Saturday, Cochise was in second place in the Arizona Community College Athletic Conference, a halfgame behind nationally-ranked Mesa in the win column.

Meanwhile, AWC, which started the week in a three-way tie for third with Scottsdale and Yavapai, kept pace on Wednesday with a 80-72 victory over Central Arizona. The Matadors are now 17-6and 12-5in the ACCAC.

“The guys did a good job of moving the basketball,” AWC coach Kelly Green said of the Matadors’ victory on Wednesday.“buttheotherthingisthat we took the ball in, then we kicked it out. We got some open shots in transition.”

Getting a victory against Cochise would put AWC a step closer in the fight to claim one of the two coveted first-round bye positions.

However, before the Matadors even think about playoff time, they have to figure out a way to slow down Cochise’s point guard, Manny Flores.

Flores leads the ACCAC in assists, averaging Ila game. He also is second in the conference in steals (3.0 per game) and among the leaders in scoring (13.8 ppg).

“They’re about the same size we are,” Green said. “They’re athletic. They shoot the ball well. They play really hard and run the floor hard. They play with a lot of enthusiasm and a lot ofemotion.”