CHEYENNE, WY - The Laramie County Community College men's basketball team left no doubt on Saturday afternoon in their final home game of the season as they cruised to a 101-66 win over Eastern Wyoming College in the opening round of the Region IX championships at Storey Gym. 

LCCC didn't find much resistance early on in the game and were powered by Xavier McCord who had 16 of the first 22 points for the Golden Eagles in the opening half, but it was really the defense that shined brightest, limiting the Lancers to only 29 first half points on the way to doubling them up in the opening half, 58-29. 

The second half was more of the same. EWC was able to find more rhythm from the three point line, but the deficit would grow to over 40 points before LCCC began to empty their bench in front of the biggest home crowd of the season. 

By games end, all but one Golden Eagle were able to get involved in the scoring on the way to the 35 point victory that boosts the LCCC men into the quarterfinals of the Region IX Championships in Casper starting on Thursday where they will face off against Western Nebraska Community College in the opening round.

The Golden Eagles were led by McCord who was 12-15 from the field for 27 points. Tristan Starks made five of his eight three's on the way to a 20 point game and Ben Hageman (12), Brandon Tchouya (12), and Pedro Ellery (10) all finished in double digits. 

The LCCC defense was also on point with 14 turnovers in the game from Eastern Wyoming and they outrebounded the Lancers 47-25 in a dominant performance inside, and this despite no LCCC player with more than six rebounds in the game. 

As a team, the Golden Eagles shot 52 percent from three and 57 percent from the field. They also continued their strong play from the free throw line going 12-17 for 70 percent. 

Laramie County will play against Western Nebraska in the quarterfinals from Casper College on Thursday afternoon with the opening tip of the game scheduled for 5:00 pm.