The College of the Canyons men's basketball team dropped its Western State Conference (WSC) home opener against Glendale Community College 78-60 on Wednesday night. 

Injuries have plagued the Cougars in the early going, with COC head coach Howard Fisher forced to play with only seven players in the game. 

The loss marks the fourth consecutive defeat for the Cougars and drops them to 0-3 in conference play.

The shorthanded Cougars were unable to keep the Glendale offense in check, as the Vaqueros shot a combined 56.4 percent from the floor.

COC trailed by as many as 28 points during the game, but a run early in the second half put the Cougars within reach, trailing by just 10 points. However, Glendale was quick to neutralize that threat.

COC freshman guard James Chevious scored a team-high 18 points on a 7-of-18 shooting night. He also had four assists, two steals and collected three rebounds in 37 minutes of play.

Sophomore Victor Nwaba added 15 points in the loss to go along with his eight rebounds and two assists.

Jacob Tobon scored seven points off the bench in 22 minutes of action.

The loss drops COC's record to 5-10 on the season.

The Cougars next game takes them on the road to Glendora, California to face off against Citrus College at 5 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 16.