By MARTY JAMES martyjames.sports@gmail.com

The Napa Valley College men's basketball team lost its third straight game to start the 2023-24 season, falling to host Santa Rosa Junior College, 78-59, at Haehl Pavilion on Tuesday, Nov. 7.

Raekwon Bell scored 12 points and had eight rebounds and two assists to lead the Storm (0-3 overall).

Oliver Aandahl scored 11 points, Chris Farrington scored nine points and had 11 rebounds, Jalen Moore had nine points, Ethan Williams had seven points, and Jaleel Turner had six points for Napa Valley.

The Storm trailed at halftime, 42-25.

NVC shot 29.2 percent (19-of-65) from the field, 26.7 percent (8-of-30) from 3-point distance, and 81.3 percent (13-of-16) from the free-throw line.

Farrington and Moore each had two 3-pointers.

Nate Broome and Jamari Taylor each had four rebounds.

Santa Rosa (1-2 overall) shot 38.4 percent (28-of-73) from the field, 33.3 percent (9-of-27) from 3-point distance, and 81.3 percent (13-of-16) at the free-throw line.

The Storm is at home on Friday, Nov. 10 for a game against Monterey Peninsula College at 5 p.m.

* Marty James is a freelance writer who makes his home in Napa. He retired on June 4, 2019 after spending 40 years as a sports writer, sports editor and executive sports editor for the Napa Valley Register, a daily newspaper in Napa County. He is a 1979 graduate of Sacramento State and a member of the California Golf Writers & Broadcasters Association. He was inducted into the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Hall of Fame in 2016, the Vintage High School Athletic Hall of Fame in 2019, and the Napa High School Athletic Hall of Fame in 2022.