In a sloppy game held at Takoma Park campus, the Montgomery College Raptors outlasted the Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA) squad 77-67.

The announcer even joked, “went to Vegas, went to Vegas, he traveled.” If travelling violations earned frequent flier miles, the teams may just be able to fly to Vegas after Friday’s performance. NOVA played a sloppy game riddled with turnovers and missed shots, leading to fast breaks by the Raptors.

Similarly, the Raptors lacked energy for long steaks of the game. With just under five minutes remaining in the first half, the Raptors failed to rebound a missed free throw at which only one opposing player was on the blocks. To energize his squad, Coach James Byson had them perform jumping jacks while in set defenses. Sophomore Alex Chike helped on the offensive end with frequent dribble drive penetration and, at times, comical displays of ball handling. In the first half Chike dribbled in front of a defender before performing what looked like an And 1 commercial of old. The referee, however, didn’t have a love of theater and called a five second violation. They don’t call him Alex “Freakshow” Chike for nothing.

Team leading Andre Gaines (21 points) and company hustled enough to win with transition buckets and timely shots. It’s not pretty, but grinding out victories is becoming a habit for this year’s team.

In other news, Monday’s game against St. Mary’s (JV) has been cancelled for later rescheduling. The Raptors look to extend their winning streak next on Wednesday, November 9 at Allegany.