Sure, it’s a cliche, but what a difference a year makes.

Last season, the Cerritos men’s basketball team finished with a 14-17 record.

The Falcons are now one win from matching that win total with an 80-55 dismantling of L.A. Trade Tech Friday at the Aviary in a South Coast Conference crossover game.

The win was the seventh in a row for the Falcons, who won the championship of the Hancock Tournament Dec. 30.

Geovanny Aispuro, who scored 16 points for the Falcons (13-5), said, “We stopped them in the beginning of the game,” and then got “started on offense.

“But overall, it was defense.”

Cerritos scored 15 of the first 16 points in the game, and led 39-15 at halftime as the Beavers (8-11) made only five shots out of 29 attempts from the field.

The Falcons increased that lead to 50-19 with 16:26 left in the game, behind a trio of three-point baskets by guard Curtis Williams.

Williams, who scored 13 points in the second half, led all scorers with 18 points.

After Trade Tech scored 17 unanswered points, Cerritos pulled away with another run to lead by 30 points, 71-41, with 4:28 remaining, as the Beavers continued to miss many of their shots.

Trade Tech ended up missing 46 of 66 field goal attempts for the game, and that includes several layup attempts.

Forward Antoine Smith scored 12 points for Cerritos, and grabbed 13 rebounds.

James Perkins, Aaron Hamilton, DaJuan Wilson and Dwight Blair added seven points each.

Blair also recorded 11 rebounds.

The Falcons will play at Pasadena Friday at 7:30 p.m. The women’s basketball team will play the Lancers that same day at 5:30 p.m.

That will be followed by games at Mt. San Antonio and East L.A., then agianst the Southern Division of the SCC.

Aispuro said the team still has “lots of room for improvement,” because “Every team is tough in the conference.”

“Everybody brings their ‘A’ game against us.”

SCORING:

L.A. TRADE TECH: McKay 4, Odiakosa 1, D. Johnson 5, Derricks 0, Shamsaldin 4, J. Johnson 11, Treadwell 14, Godbolt 6, Miller 1, Jenkins 9.

CERRITOS: Justin 2, Muradzikwa 2, Aispuro 16, Williams 18, Perkins 7, Hamilton 7, Wilson 7, Heron 2, Blair 7, Smith 12.