TURLOCK -- Walking out of the Pitman gym with a win is rarely easy.
It's the type of place you'd like to bring a hard hat, lunch pail and punch the time clock because you have to go to work.
Golden Valley got some key second-half baskets from Mark Durbin and Rob Martinez as the Cougars grounded out a 58-50 win on Wednesday night.
"You need a hard hat the way the ball was flying around again tonight," Golden Valley coach Keith Hunter said. "You need it for protection."
The Cougars (6-2 Central California Conference, 15-5 overall) 19 turnovers and an horrid start that saw Pitman (5-3, 13-7) score the first 10 points of the game.
"We weren't ready at the start," said Durbin, who scored 12 of his 13 points in the second half. "We panicked in our offense. It took us a while to settle down and get into the flow of the game."
The Cougars fought their way back into the game. They were able to withstand a couple mini runs by the Pride in the second quarter before going into the half tied at 24-all.
Durbin then came up big in the third quarter with seven points. He went to work in the post with some jump hooks and turnaround shots against smaller players.
"I don't know what to say about Mark Durbin," Hunter said. "He was big for us. There are some times when I don't know who is going to score for us. Besides Rob, we don't have a guy who can just blow by people."
Meanwhile, the Cougars defense stifled Pitman, holding the Pride to just five points in the third quarter as GV opened up a 35-29 lead.
Pitman made just two of 11 shots in the third quarter and 20 of 51 shots from the floor in the game.
"Those single-digit quarters kill you," Hunter said. "You try to stay away from them and try to hang it on somebody."
Both teams heated up in the fourth quarter.
Pitman had no answer for Martinez, who had no problem getting to the rim in the fourth quarter for a basket or a trip to the free-throw line.
With the Pride defenders concerned about leaving GV players open for 3-pointers, that left the lane open for Martinez, who scored 12 of his game-high 20 points in the fourth.
"Rob was great," Durbin said. "He played with a lot of energy. He was able to get some steals and created a lot of fast-break opportunities."
Still Pitman stuck around as the Pride capitalized on Golden Valley turnovers.
Sexton hit a 3-pointer with 4:04 left to cut the GV lead to 44-38 and Ryan Keaton stole the inbound pass and scored on a layup to cut the lead to 46-43 seconds later.
Martinez got loose for a couple layups to help extend the lead to 53-45, but Pitman came right back with back-to-back buckets, including Sexton's third 3-pointer of the fourth quarter that cut the GV lead to 53-50 with 1:28 left.
Sexton made four 3-pointers in the game and finished with 16 points.
"One of the things about Pitman is if you let them hang around they know how to finish," Hunter said. "They know they can do it."
Martinez again found his way into the paint for a bucket and Adam Durbin hit a pair of free throws to help seal the win down the stretch for the Cougars.
Golden Valley has now won five games after starting 1-2 in the CCC.
The Cougars will host Turlock on Friday.
"It was tough, we didn't play our best game," Hunter said. "I'm certain our best basketball is in front of us."
Buhach Colony 54, Merced 43
ATWATER -- Andrew Mark delivered big with 23 points and 15 rebounds as the Thunder (6-2 CCC, 14-6) kept pace with the Cougars atop the conference standings.
Buhach Colony jumped out to a 10-2 lead by the end of the first quarter.
Travante Richard led Merced (2-6 CCC) with 13 points.
Roger Klauser added 10 points and Tyler Trammel dished out six assists for the Thunder, who host Pitman in a key contest on Friday.
Turlock 60, Atwater 36
TURLOCK -- Dashawn Holcombe paced the Bulldogs with 14 points as they improved to 5-3 in the CCC. Garry Harris led Atwater (0-8 CCC) with 10 points.
Los Banos 76, Pacheco 62
LOS BANOS -- Joey Bennett poured in 27 points as the Tigers held off their new crosstown rivals. Edgar Iglesias led Pacheco with 23 points.
Los Banos hosts Central Catholic on Friday in a matchup of the top two teams in the Western Athlete Conference.
About Comments
Reader comments on Sacbee.com are the opinions of the writer, not The Sacramento Bee. If you see an objectionable comment, click the "Report Abuse" link below it. We will delete comments containing inappropriate links, obscenities, hate speech, and personal attacks. Flagrant or repeat violators will be banned. See more about comments here.