It was a tough weekend for the West Hills College Coalinga men's basketball team. Competing at Porterville College's Milt Stowe Classic, the Falcons came out on the losing of both its games. On Friday, WHCC was edged by Moorpark College 99-97 and fell 72-51 to Bakersfield College to close it out on Saturday.

Against Moorpark, the Falcons nearly erased a 21-point deficit at halftime. West Hills was down 65-44 at the break but came up just short in a late-game rally.

With under eight seconds to play and trailing by three points (99-96), the Falcons were only able to convert on 1 of 4 free throw attempts. A potential game-tying layup at the buzzer also missed, allowing Moorpark to escape with the victory.

West Hills got off to another slow start on Saturday against Bakersfield and trailed 36-24 at halftime. The Falcons were outrebounded 46-29, limiting most second-chance opportunities.

Jabari Merritt poured in a season-high 26 points to lead all scorers. He had a double-double with 11 rebounds. Devion Edwards chipped in with eight points and nine rebounds.

West Hills fell to 1-4 overall on the season and returns to action on Nov. 23 to face Bakersfield again at home. Opening tip is set for 6 p.m. in Coalinga.