Merced girls upset Buhach Colony

MERCED — When Tekerra Borden and Dalonna Jones are clicking, Merced can be a dangerous team.

Buhach Colony found that out the hard way Thursday.

Jones recorded her second triple-double this season and Borden poured in 21 points as the Bears upset the Thunder 48-39.

The 6-foot Jones was a force in the middle of Merced's 2-3 zone, and Buhach Colony (6-2 Central California Conference, 12-8 overall) struggled shooting over her long arms. The sophomore center finished with 14 points, 20 rebounds and 11 blocked shots.

"She got another triple-double, she's happy," Borden said. "That's her goal. It pushes her."

The Bears' zone caused the Thunder fits all night.

Merced didn't allow any driving lanes for Thunder point guard Allison Wisdom and sharp-shooter Jessica Silva didn't get many good looks from outside.

Widsom finished with 10 points, with six of them coming from the free-throw line. Silva managed just six points on two 3-pointers.

The Thunder made just 11 of 48 (23 percent) shots from the floor and were almost as bad from the free-throw line, making eight of 24 (33 percent) attempts.

Both teams struggled to get in a rhythm offensively at the start, combining for 15 turnovers in the first quarter alone.

The Bears held Buhach scoreless the first 6:34 of the second quarter, but couldn't pull away because they made just one of seven from the free-throw line.

Borden and Jones combined to score 14 of Merced's 18 points in the first half to give the Bears a five-point lead at the half.

"Both of them have to play well for us," said Merced coach Brad Reed, whose team improved to 4-4 in the CCC. "It's nice to have that inside game."