The Knights erased a 16-point deficit in a 94-82 comeback victory over Mesa that clinched at least a share of the PCAC South championship. It is the fifth conference title since 2004-05 when Head Coach Mitch Charlens took the helm.
The win, which was City's seventh straight, also improved the Knights' record to 20-7 overall and 6-0 in conference. This is the third consecutive season, and fourth in the last five years, that the Knights have reached the 20-win mark.
Sophomore guard Spencer Mattox tied his season-high with 24 points and also dished out seven assists in Friday's victory.
Sophomore guard Taylor Nelson poured in 22 points to go with five rebounds and four assists.
The Knights were in a funk offensively in the first half and Mesa, who hit 7-of-9 three-pointers in the first half, took advantage with a 23-6 run to take a 32-16 lead with 7:32 left in the first half.
City finally got going in the last five minutes of the half with a 14-5 run and got to within five points by halftime at 42-37.
The Knights looked more like themselves early second half and used a 19-2 run, including 10 points from Mattox, to take a 56-46 lead with 14:57 remaining.
Mesa's Sohn Walker, who scored a game-high 25 points, kept the Olympians in the game by scoring seven consecutive points to get his team within a bucket at 65-63, but the Knights responded with a quick 10-1 run in the span of 1:53 to regain control of the game.
City's lead would grow to as many as 16 late in the game as they kept their undefeated conference season in tact.
The Knights shot 53.8 percent from the floor in the second half after shooting only 35.1 percent in the first half.
City committed only eight turnovers, which equals their lowest amount this season. They took advantage of Mesa's 16 turnovers by scoring 19 points off them.
The Knights will conclude the regular season with two games on the road at Imperial Valley on Wednesday and at Southwestern on Friday, February 19. They will secure an outright conference championship with one win or one Southwestern loss.
