Saturday, November 30, 2013

JC scores from Friday night

* San Jose City College 90 - Sacramento City College 77 boxscore

For the Jaguars, Andre Russell went for a 28/12 double-double while teammate Bobby Gray scored 24 points.

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* Merritt College 78 - Bakersfield 54 boxscore

Anthony Knight scored 21 points while grabbing 12 boards and passing for five assists

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* College of the Siskiyous 72 - Umpqua 64

* Lassen College 67 - Contra Costa College 62

* LA Pierce 79 - Sierra College 70 boxscore

* Diablo Valley College 70 - Solano College 40 boxscore

* Butte College 81 - Simpson JV 68

* Wayne 73 - Feather River College 45

Chico in a blowout

Chico State hosted Dominican University last night and posted an 86-56 victory, powered by going 12-27 from long distance. Five Wildcats scored in double figure starting with Giordano Estrada's 15 points (five three-pointers), 14 from Jordan Barton, Jordan Semple's 13, 12 from Rashad Parker and Sean Park's 10.

A quartet of Penguins also reached double figures: Matt Hayes with 13, Connor Haysbert's 12, plus 10 apiece from Myles Carrillo and Dom Taplin.

Luke Reid reports.

SF State falls by five

The nets were shredded last night as Seattle Pacific came out on top by five points -- 101 to 96 -- versus San Francisco State.  

For Coach Paul Trevor, Nefi Perdomo finished with 28 points on 11-14 shooting while Bennie Rhodes finished with 17.

Gator athletics game reports.

A James Hadnot update

James Hadnot departed from Sacramento High looking for a challenge. That came in the form of joining a team, Ranger College, in the vaunted Texas junior college ranks.

In a recent 53-51 loss to Angelina College, Hadnot scored six points and grabbed six boards in 13 minutes of play.

Taylor producing numbers

Isaiah Taylor lit up the stats sheet last night for 10 points, five rebounds, five assists and two steals (zero turnovers) in Texas' 72-69 victory last night over Texas Arlington.

The Waves roll over Denver

Brendan Lane totaled 12 points, five rebounds and five assists in Pepperdine's 68-56 win over Denver last night.

The Aztecs make some noise

In a bit of a surprise, San Diego State proved six points better than Creighton last night, 85-80. Xavier Thames went for 26 points on 7-10 overall shooting, 4-5 from long distance.

The Widcats take down the Dookies

As many of you watched, Arizona topped Duke 72-66 in Madison Square Garden last night.

Rob Dauster provides game information and commentary.

Anderson with a near double-double

Marquette handled George Washington 76-60 last night as Juan Anderson just missed a double-double with 10 points plus nine boards and he accomplished this in just 18 minutes of play.

Oregon bops Pacific

Visiting Pacific fell to Oregon last night 85-62 but freshman T.J. Wallace showed well with 14 points on 4-8 overall shooting.

Michigan - Coppin State no contest

Michigan blasted Coppin State 87-45 last night but the latter's Sterling Smith still scored nine points on 4-6 shooting while nabbing three steals.

Mizzou wins again

Jabari Brown posted 24 points alongside nine boards in Missouri's 83-70 win over Nevada last night.

Kinney helps in Bakersfield success

Last night, Erik Kinney totaled 11 points and six boards (plus two blocked shots) in Cal State Bakersfield's victory over Northern Arizona.

Friday, November 29, 2013

Bay Valley Conference stats

In the Bay Valley Conference, the top five scorers thus far are:

* Chris Smith Yuba 22.8

* Anthony Knight Merritt 21.4

* Davion Mize Conta Costa 21.3

* Armein Outing Contra Costa 19.7

* Aris Morton College of Alameda 18.3

The top five rebounders are:

* Jaysen Williams Yuba 9.8

* David Andoh Merritt 8.8

* Davion Mize Contra Costa 8.0

* Denzel Fizer Napa 7.4

* Maceo Bell Merritt 7.3

Big 8 Conference stats

In the Big 8 Conference, the top five scorers thus far are:

* AJ Bridges Cosumnes River 20.8

* Jaycob Velasco Cosumnes River 19.8

* Anthony Hubbard Modesto 17.5

* Josh Allen Modesto 17.4

* Alex Simmons San Joaquin delta 15.8

The top five rebounders are:

* Josh Allen Modesto 12.8

* Jaycob Velasco Cosumnes River 9.8

* Jerrel Green San Joaquin Delta 8.5

* Brian Johnson Santa Rosa 8.2

* Cody Wilcox Sierra 7.7

Golden Valley Conference stats

In the Golden Valley Conference top five scorers thus far are:

* Lavar Moore Siskiyous 20.8

* Aaron Brown Feather River 18.6

* Maurice Johnson Feather River 18.0

* Arthur Caldwell Butte 15.7

* Johnny Shelton Jr. Redwoods 14.5

The top five rebounders are:

* Jon Losa Redwoods 18.5

* Julian McCovey Siskiyous 10.0

* Justin Gavard Butte 8.7

* Maurice Johnson Feather River 7.6

* Denzel Famble Lassen 6.3

The 2013-14 Santa Rosa Junior College Bear Cubs

Coach Craig McMillan has released the roster of his 2013-14 Santa Rosa Junior College Bear Cubs:

* Josh Douglas guard 5-foot-7 freshman Vintage High, Napa

* Davone Oliver guard 5-foot-8 freshman Castlemont High, Oakland

* Quentin Mendoza guard 5-foot-9 sophomore Montgomery High, Santa Rosa

* Matthew Hayes guard 6-foot-0 freshman Pleasant Grove High, Elk Grove

* Alec Kobre guard 6-foot-3 sophomore Montgomery High, Santa Rosa

* Kai Drewry guard 6-foot-4 sophomore Redwood High, Larkspur

* Michael Simanek 6-foot-5 forward freshman Montgomery High, Santa Rosa

* Brian Johnson 6-foot-5 forward sophomore Maria Carrillo High, Santa Rosa

* Corey Hammel 6-foot-6 forward freshman Cardinal Newman High, Santa Rosa

* Luke Cocheran 6-foot-10 center sophomore Del Oro High, Loomis

* Darin Grayer 6-foot-8 center sophomore Roseland Prep, Santa Rosa

Three newcomers for HSU

Humboldt State has signed a trio of high schoolers for next season.

More on the new college foul calls

Dick Jerardi joins the line of those looking at the new college rules as to what constitutes a foul. What's funny is in the photo used to illustrate the topic, it sure looks like it's the offensive player using his arms and not the defender but we don't see what preceded that moment.

Competitive greatness

Tim McDonald writes about competitive greatness -- learned or discovered?

Pay for the play of college athletes?

Sergio Sanchez look at the play-for-pay college athletes conundrum through the lens of Chico State players.

The Big O

Oscar Robertson just turned 75 -- what an amazing talent yet held back by the mediocre talent surrounding him during his career. That is, until he and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar teamed up in Milwaukee.

Looking at this season's Butte College men's basketball squad

Joseph Shufelberger looks at the 2013-14 Butte College Roadrunners.

Global Sports Innovation with a Black Friday sale

Global Sports Innovation (GSI) is offering its BLACK FRIDAY 25% of SALE for their basketball product line (code is black).  This includes the top selling shooting products in the world (J-Glove and J-Strap), as well as V-Bands for Dribbling and O-Bands for strength, agility, quickness, jump training.  They also have the top instructional DVDs on the market (Millennium Series).

The Nor Cal Tip Off Classic is Saturday

7th Annual Nor Cal Tip Off Classic Schedule
Saturday November 30, 2013 at Newark Memorial High School
 
 
Game 1: 11:00 a.m. Fairfield vs. Castro Valley

Game 2: 12:30 p.m. College Park (Pleasant Hill) vs. St. Mary's (Stockton)

Game 3: 2:15 p.m. Heritage (Brentwood) vs. Oakland
 

Game 4: 3:45 p.m. Freedom (Oakley) vs. Granite Bay

Game 5: 5:30 p.m. Moreau (Hayward) vs. Monte Vista (Danville)

Game 6: 7:00 p.m. Newark Memorial (Newark) vs.  Modesto Christian
 

Game 7: 8:30 p.m. Bishop O'Dowd (Oakland) vs. Bullard (Fresno)

The top players of note: 

BOD is lead by 6-foot-9 junior forward Ivan Rabb who is ranked #3 nationally in the 2015 class by ESPN. Other elite prospects include 6-foot-6 sophomore wing Oscar Frayer and 6-foot-2 freshman guard Dimari Milstead of Moreau Catholic and 6-foot-2 sophomore guard Christian Ellis of Modesto Christian.

Overall, approximately thirty Division I prospects will be playing in the event. There are currently four student-athlete D-1 signees who will be participating: 


* 6-foot-3 senior Gabe Vincent of St. Mary's Stockton - Santa Barbara 

* 6-foot-7 senior AJ John of Maria Carrillo - Pepperdine

* 5-foot-9 senior Jalen McFerren of Castro Valley - Chico State

* 6-foot-3 senior Trevor John of Monte Vista - Cal Poly

Seniors of note include: 


* 6-foot-6 Elliott Smith of Freedom
* 6-foot-5 Shon Briggs of Heritage
* 6-foot-5 Damien Banford of Newark Memorial
* 6-foot-1 Joey Frenchwood of Newark Memorial
* 6-foot-8 Matthew Thomas of Newark Memorial
* 6-foot-4 Calvin Young of Bullard
* 6-foot-0 Mason Washington of Modesto Christian
* 5-foot-11 Demoriaye Hart-Spikes of Fairfield
* 6-foot-2 Jamaliah Brown of Oakland
* 6-foot-3 Sebastian Flores of Bishop O’Dowd
* 6-foot-9 Spencer Rust of Monte Vista,

Prominent Juniors are:


* 6-foot-3 Austin Armstead of Bullard
* 6-ffot-6 Anthony Townes of Modesto Christian
* 6-foot-7 Leandro Amador of Modesto Christian
* 6-foot-1 Jeff Wu of Modesto Christian
* 6-foot-6 Kevin Hamlet of Modesto Christian
* 6-foot-0 Gionni Brown of Oakland,
* 6-foot-6 Kendall McIntosh of Freedom 
* 6-foot-7 Isaiah Thomas of Bishop O’Dowd
* 5-foot-10 Paris Austin of Bishop O’Dowd
* 6-foot-6 Kevin Crosno of College Park
* 6-foot-6 Lance Coleman of St. Mary’s Stockton
* 5-foot-9 Devin Williams of St. Mary’s Stockton.

Highly regarded Sophomores are:


* 5-foot-11 Armond Simmons of Moreau Catholic
* 6-foot-2 Brandon Lawrence of Moreau Catholic

Freshman to watch are:


* 6-foot-2 Damari Milstead of Moreau Catholic
* 6-foot-4 Dvan Molden of Moreau Catholic
* 5-foot-8 Nick Lombard of College Park

Moore powers UTEP

UTEP took down Tennessee 78-70 last night with McKenzie Moore pacing the Miners with 19 points.

Brown aids in Missou win

Jabari Brown totaled 15 points plus eight rebounds in Missouri's 78-67 win over Northwestern on Thursday.

Thomas & Andrews lead the way.

On Wednesday, Kyi Thomas' 18 points plus 17 by Jamir Andrews (three treys) paced Sheridan College to a 105-73 over Colorado Northwest Community College.

Thursday, November 28, 2013

JC scores from Wednesday

* Skyline College 87 - Gavilan College 65 boxscore

For Skyline, Kevin (Lincoln High) Brandenberg totaled 22 points, nine rebounds and six assists with teammate Brandon (Mills High) Berkovatz finished with 19/9 plus four blocks. 

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* Foothill College  74 - Monterey Peninsula College 66 

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* De Anza College 89 - Cañada College 85

Checking in on Stephen Domingo

Stephen Domingo graduated out of the prep ranks (St. Ignatius High) in summer 2012, having completed the necessary academic requirements in three years. He signed with Georgetown and played 20 games in 2012-13 at just under six minutes an outing.

In five games so far this season, Domingo has played in four with a six minutes per contest average. His stats are negligible at this point but people forget that this would actually be his freshman year in college had he attended high school for the usual time frame.

Read this (and forever hold our tongues)

Brian Phillips on Marcus Smart -- "He's succeeded his way into something that looks, from the outside, kind of like failure."

We offer our opinions (yours truly included) when, in fact, we don't have (and most often will never possess) the full picture from which to validate out 'truths.'

Imagine what the so-called cognescenti (and others) were disparagingly saying about Smart just a few years ago, without knowing where and what he came from let alone the transformation he would be undergoing.

Creating a team culture

Never heard of "Separation Seminars" before this.

The difference between 18 and 23

The journey to date of Humboldt State Lumberjack David Howard is captured by Danny Penza.

So there was an altercation

It was an altercation with a teammate that generated the momentum for Cody Doolin's departure from the USF basketball team.

Steve Kroner reports.

Jorge Contreras reports.

Smith aids in Warrior win

It was Hawaii 91-58 over New Orleans in the islands last night with CCSF transfer guard Quincy Smith providing 10 points and four assists in 15 minutes of play for the victors.

Wright does it again

Fromer CCSF star Delon Wright keeps stuffing the stats sheet for Utah -- the latest last night in a 23 point (9-11 shooting), seven assist, five steal and four rebound performance in an 88-69 win over Ball State.

USF handles Sonoma

USF welcomed Sonoma State to the Hilltop last night and put up back-to-back 48 point 20 minute periods to take a 96-73 win. Frontcourter Mark Tollefsen finished with eight rebounds and six points for the Dons.

James (St. Elizabeth High/Northern Colorado) Davis and Zen (Santa Cruz High/Monterey Peninsula College) Maki each scored 10 points for the Seawolves.

Arizona comes back

In Madison Square Garden, Arizona was down by 16 at one point to Drexel before storming back and winning 66-62. Aaron Gordon posted an 11 point/12 rebound double-double.

San Marcos by six over Concordia

Cal State San Marcos hosted Concordia last night and the former came away with an 88-82 victory.

For the victors, De'End Parker finished with 24 points, five boards and four assists while teammate Adam Eakles came thisclose to a double-double with 10 points plus nine boards.

Concordia received 13 points from Tim Harris and 10 boards from Stephen Grosey.

Portland bests SJSU

San Jose State University came into Portland to shoot down the Pilots but Coach Eric Reveno's guys emerged the winners, 86-69. Sophomore guard Bryce (Jesuit High) Pressley finished with eight points, six rebounds, six assists and a pair of steals for the Rose City residents. He entered the game with a 21/7 assist-to-turnover ratio.

Wednesday, November 27, 2013

JC games for today (Wednesday)

* Gavilan College - Skyline College       
   
* Monterey Peninsula College - Foothill College            

* De Anza College - Cañada College

JC scores from Tuesday night

* Columbia College  90 - William Jessup JV 72

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* San Joaquin Delta College 73 - Merced College 47

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* City College of San Francisco 100 - Hartnell College 71

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* Reedley College 81 - Modesto Junior College 74

Don't forget about Aubrey Dawkins

Caught this the other day from Eric Bossi: "Also playing well for New Hampton was Aubrey Dawkins. Originally a class of 2013 kid, the son of Stanford coach Johnny Dawkins has stretched out to about 6-foot-4 and added to his game. He's a good shooter, plays a patient floor game and has sneaky athleticism on drives to the cup."

Meet the 2013-14 Diablo Valley College Vikings

Diablo Valley College Coach Steve Coccimiglio has rolled out his 2013-14 roster with the majority being sophomores. Jermaine Edmonds and Tom Witzel certainly drew a number of college coaches to early practices:

* Eric Ellis
Ht:  6'1"; Wt. 160
Year:  Freshman
High School: Bentley
Hometown: Emeryville   

* A.B. Najee
Ht:  6'3"; Wt. 190
Year: Sophomore    
High School: Berkeley
Hometown: Berkeley
   
* Connor Jean
Ht:  6'2"; Wt. 170
Year:  Sophomore
High School: Northgate
Hometown: Concord

* Jermaine Edmonds
Ht:  6'5";  Wt. 200
Year:  Freshman
High School: St. Elizabeth
Hometown: Oakland
   
* Justin Yeargin
Ht: 6'1"; Wt. 175
Year: Sophomore
High School: Bishop O'Dowd
Hometown: Oakland
   
* Joe McNiff
Ht: 6'4"; Wt. 190
Year: Freshman
High School: De La Salle
Hometown: Concord

* Kunle Fashola
Ht: 6'5"; Wt. 220
Year: Sophomore
High School: Clayton Valley
Hometown: Oakland
   
* Devon Pouncey
Ht: 6'8"; Wt. 210
Year: Sophomore
High School: Rodriguez
Hometown: Vallejo
   
* Kairon Moore
Ht: 6'5"; Wt. 210
Year: Sophomore
High School: Pinole
Hometown: Richmond

* Tom Witzel
Ht: 6'8"; Wt. 245
Year: Sophomore
High School: Arcata
Hometown: Arcata
   
* John Ocon
Ht: 6'8"; Wt. 280
Year: Sophomore
High School: Fairfield
Hometown: Fairfield

Scores from the NCS Foundation Games


NCS Foundation game scores:

* Bentley 55, Urban 49

* Miramonte 68, Marin Catholic 67

* Richmond 63, Livermore Valley Charter 18

* Livermore 62, Antioch 43

* Bishop O'Dowd 59, De La Salle 46

* Castro Valley 71, Monte Vista 70

* El Cerrito 94, Freedom 67

* Amador Valley 51, American 46

* Castro Valley 71, Monte Vista 70

* Liberty 67, St. Joseph Notre Dame 54

* Dublin 67, Washington 61

Testimony for Rolaun Dunham

Here's Coach Mike Tubbs writing about one of his players:
As a StanCo [Stampede] director, coach, and parent, I too had the pleasure of coaching, mentoring, and nurturing Ro. There aren't enough cliches and verbiage one could place on an individual that would serve Ro his just due. His coach (Jennings) once told me that Roe 'broke into' the gym, and when found was shooting with the lights off in complete darkness because he didn't have a light key. Not many times have we as a program crossed paths with a kid that you know gets it, understands his surroundings, and blessings. It was, is and will continue to be in this young mans life, and watch his progress. Not once will I ever worry about him in a negative light.
Riverbank High senior guard Rolaun Dunham just signed a full ride with Whitman College in Washington. Amid all the craziness and despair that appears in the headlines and leads off the news on our television screens, we need to remember that such is countered by so many good people whose stories usually never see the light of day in print or on the air waves.

Chasing the dream

Gonzaga basketball is a huge financial and student catalyst for the university as Jody Lawrence-Turner writes. For Spokane too.

How many others dream of duplicating this?

How many have or will?

Doolin exits USF team

The see saw has gone back and forth the past few days, swinging between the Cody Doolin is still part of the Dons team faction and those who insisted he was gone.

USF athletics made it official today: the senior is staying in school but won't be playing basketball.

Bird stars but Cal falls

California fell 92-81 to Syracuse over in Maui last night but Jabari Bird carried his weight with 17 points and seven rebounds in 36 minutes.

Matt Scott with a December visit

Sierra Assistant Coach Brandon Cole tweeted about an upcoming trip: "Former river city and current Sierra college wing Matt Scott will be taking a visit to cal poly dec 14"

Sterling Smith named PoW

Missed this from earlier:
Sterling Smith of Coppin State was named the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Player of the Week, the conference announced on Monday...  

Smith (G, 6-4, 200, So., Chico, Calif.) led the Eagles to a 1-1 mark last week, including a 78-73 victory over Oregon State.  Smith scored a career-high 21 points, shooting 8-of-12 from the field, with four rebounds, three steals and two blocks in the Eagles’ first-ever win against a Pac-12 opponent. He also scored 16 points with seven rebounds and two steals against California. For the week, he averaged 18.5 points, shooting 63-percent from the field (14-of-22), with 5.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 1.5 blocks, and 2.5 steals.

Utah State down Weber

Utah State went into Ogden for a rivalry match with Weber State and the visitors came away with a 77-71 victory. Spencer Butterfield posted a line of 16 points and five rebounds while Davion Berry totaled 21 points plus three assists for the Wildcats. Jordan Richardson added nine points on a trio of treys for Weber.

The Hornets top the Aggies

Last night, Sacramento State tangled with host and rival UC Davis and it was the Hornets finishing on top 73-67 as guard Mikh McKinney led with 25 points, including 10-10 from the foul line. Backcourt teammate Dylan Garrity added 10 points, six assists and zero turnovers.

Frontcourter Josh Ritchart paced the Aggies with 20 points.

Cal State EB bests WJU

The buzzer sounded last night with Cal State East Bay ahead 83-72 over visiting William Jessup University - Matt Horrocks reports. Gabe Kindred and Nick Grieves each scored 17 (Grieves nailed five treys) points for the Pioneers with Jacari Whitfield adding 16 plus a tops-on-the-team eight assists.

For the Warriors, Corey Clement exploded for an amazing 30 point/19 rebound output.

The Penguins waddle over the Otters

Dominican University proved to be 10 better than visiting Cal State Monterey Bay last night 86-76. Former northern California prepsters Matt Hayes and Connor Haysbert each scored 11 for the victors.

Stanislaus bops Merced

Cal State Stanislaus had no trouble with UC Merced last night, finishing with a 98-64 triumph. For the winners, big Marcus Bell totaled 20 points while wing Chris Read was right behind with 18. Read added eight rebounds and five assists for the Warriors.

Kurtz powers Biola

Biola took down La Sierra last night 74-61 with Mike Kurtz providing a 15/11 double-double alongside a pair of blocked shots.

Tuesday, November 26, 2013

JC games today (Tuesday)

* William Jessup JV - Columbia College       
            
* San Joaquin Delta College - Merced College           

* City College of San Francisco - Hartnell College            

* Modesto Junior College - Reedley College

An Isaiah Taylor update

Isaiah Taylor departed the East Bay after his sophomore year and enrolled in a high school in Houston. As a prep senior, the 6-foot-1 backcourter signed with Coach Rick Barnes and the University of Texas.

So how is he doing thus far as a freshman?

Taylor has started each of the five games for the Longhorns and is averaging just under 27 minutes each time out. He's scoring 9.4 points, passing for 3.4 assists and grabbing 3.2 rebounds per contest. His shooting is subpar thus far but it's indicative that he has already gone to the foul line 39 times in those five matchups.

Didn't know his uncle is Terrell Lowery.

Dominican hoops previewed

Tim Menicutch preview the 2013-14 Dominican University Penguins who have three senior starters.

Bridges honored

Cosumnes River College guard AJ Bridges has been named the Hawks Student-Athlete of the Week.

Bobbitt goes for 32

On Sunday, Roderick Bobbitt's 32 points paced Indian Hills to a 97-84 win over Missouri State West Plains.

MRI for QSmith

Brian McInnis reports on Quincy Smith's back soreness.

The fast approaching Nor Cal Tip Off Classic

7th Annual Nor Cal Tip Off Classic Schedule
Saturday November 30, 2013 at Newark Memorial High School
 
 
Game 1: 11:00 a.m. Fairfield vs. Castro Valley

Game 2: 12:30 p.m. College Park (Pleasant Hill) vs. St. Mary's (Stockton)

Game 3: 2:15 p.m. Heritage (Brentwood) vs. Oakland
 

Game 4: 3:45 p.m. Freedom (Oakley) vs. Granite Bay

Game 5: 5:30 p.m. Moreau (Hayward) vs. Monte Vista (Danville)

Game 6: 7:00 p.m. Newark Memorial (Newark) vs.  Modesto Christian
 

Game 7: 8:30 p.m. Bishop O'Dowd (Oakland) vs. Bullard (Fresno)

The top players of note: 

BOD is lead by 6-foot-9 junior forward Ivan Rabb who is ranked #3 nationally in the 2015 class by ESPN. Other elite prospects include 6-foot-6 sophomore wing Oscar Frayer and 6-foot-2 freshman guard Dimari Milstead of Moreau Catholic and 6-foot-2 sophomore guard Christian Ellis of Modesto Christian.

Overall, approximately thirty Division I prospects will be playing in the event. There are currently four student-athlete D-1 signees who will be participating: 


* 6-foot-3 senior Gabe Vincent of St. Mary's Stockton - Santa Barbara 

* 6-foot-7 senior AJ John of Maria Carrillo - Pepperdine

* 5-foot-9 senior Jalen McFerren of Castro Valley - Chico State

* 6-foot-3 senior Trevor John of Monte Vista - Cal Poly

Seniors of note include: 


* 6-foot-6 Elliott Smith of Freedom
* 6-foot-5 Shon Briggs of Heritage
* 6-foot-5 Damien Banford of Newark Memorial
* 6-foot-1 Joey Frenchwood of Newark Memorial
* 6-foot-8 Matthew Thomas of Newark Memorial
* 6-foot-4 Calvin Young of Bullard
* 6-foot-0 Mason Washington of Modesto Christian
* 5-foot-11 Demoriaye Hart-Spikes of Fairfield
* 6-foot-2 Jamaliah Brown of Oakland
* 6-foot-3 Sebastian Flores of Bishop O’Dowd
* 6-foot-9 Spencer Rust of Monte Vista,

Prominent Juniors are:


* 6-foot-3 Austin Armstead of Bullard
* 6-ffot-6 Anthony Townes of Modesto Christian
* 6-foot-7 Leandro Amador of Modesto Christian
* 6-foot-1 Jeff Wu of Modesto Christian
* 6-foot-6 Kevin Hamlet of Modesto Christian
* 6-foot-0 Gionni Brown of Oakland,
* 6-foot-6 Kendall McIntosh of Freedom 
* 6-foot-7 Isaiah Thomas of Bishop O’Dowd
* 5-foot-10 Paris Austin of Bishop O’Dowd
* 6-foot-6 Kevin Crosno of College Park
* 6-foot-6 Lance Coleman of St. Mary’s Stockton
* 5-foot-9 Devin Williams of St. Mary’s Stockton.

Highly regarded Sophomores are:


* 5-foot-11 Armond Simmons of Moreau Catholic
* 6-foot-2 Brandon Lawrence of Moreau Catholic

Freshman to watch are:


* 6-foot-2 Damari Milstead of Moreau Catholic
* 6-foot-4 Dvan Molden of Moreau Catholic
* 5-foot-8 Nick Lombard of College Park

Bird putting up the points

California topped Arkansas 85-77 last night in Maui with four of the quintet of starters for the Bears playing 30+ minutes. Freshman Jabari (Salesian High) Bird tied for second in points on the night with 15, nailing three of four trey attempts.

Clement honored as PoW

Corey Clement of William Jessup University is the California Pacific Conference Player of the Week.

Napa Valley playing well

From the Napa Valley Register:
"The Storm bounced back from Friday night’s 78-64 semifinal loss to Chabot with an 81-64 win over Porterville in Saturday’s third-place game of the James Clark Memorial Tournament at Cosumnes River College in Sacramento..."
Hit the link above for the complete article.

Ritchart honored

Based on his output in a trio of games, UC Davis senior Josh Ritchart is deservedly the Big West Conference Player of the Week.

Coach K's JC team rankings

Coach K serves up his weekly junior college team rankings, listing #1 through #15..

Brown powers Missou

Over in Hawaii, Missouri topped IUPUI 78-64 last night with Jabari (Oakland High) Brown leading the Tigers with 24 points, including 5-8 from three-point range.

Press for Kiwi

Sam Laird kooks at the trials and travails of an 'internet sensation' in his lengthy article "The Ballad of Kiwi Gardner" -- it opens with the 2009 game featuring the Oakland Soldiers and the Bay Area Hoosiers, the best summer game I have ever witnessed.

Marcus Bell honored

From the Modesto Bee:
­Marcus Bell has added some new punch to the Cal State Stanislaus Warriors.

Bell, the Warriors’ 6-foot-9, 225-pound center by way of the University of Idaho and Enochs High, once again proved nearly unstoppable during Stanislaus’ 69-48 win Saturday afternoon over Holy Names at Fitzpatrick Arena.

Bell scored points on 13 of 16 shooting from the floor, pulled down 15 rebounds and blocked three shots for Stanislaus, which opened with three wins in a row for the second time in the last three years.

The senior from Modesto, last week’s California Collegiate Athletic Association’s Player of the Week, is averaging 26.3 points and 11.3 rebounds per game. Saturday’s game marked his second consecutive double-double in a performance he punctuated with emphatic slam dunks.

More important, Bell rallied his team after Holy Names (1-5) closed an 18-point deficit to seven midway through the second half.
Here's Bell's page at the Cal State Stanislaus men's basketball site.

Monday, November 25, 2013

Bird ready to do it for Cal

John Crumpacker goes long in a look at Cal and former Salesian High star Jabari Bird.

This week's Massey rankings

Mel Grussing serves up this week's Massey poll of the state junior college teams.

JC scores from Sunday

* Cabrillo College 83 - Merritt College 76 OT Boxscore

From the Cabrillo College basketball site: "The Seahawks won their second straight game and improved their record to 4-2 on the season by defeating Merrit College (Oakland) ranked #8 in Northern California at the Shasta Tournament. It's was the second straight game to go into overtime and the Seahawks responded with a 83-76 win to take the Consolation Championship game."

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* Fresno City College 80 - Lassen College 63 Boxscore

From the Fresno Bee:

"Chris Ashanti scored 12 points and grabbed a team-high seven rebounds to cap a tournament MVP performance as Fresno City beat Lassen 80-63 in the championship of the El Camino College Tournament of Champions in Torrance.

Ashanti averaged 15.7 points and six rebounds per game for the tournament on 56.3% shooting.

The Rams (8-1) went into the locker room trailing 41-34 but rode a 27-6 run in the opening 8:56 of the second half to the win. They shot 16 for 24 while the Cougars went 6 for 27 in the final 20 minutes.

Freshman Meshawn Beard scored 11 points and dished out five assists for the Cougars (4-2). He led the tournament with a 17.3 scoring average in three games, earning an all-tournament spot.

Fresno City's Rich Tesmer also made the all-tourney team after hitting 4 of 9 3-pointers for the tournament and scoring 12 points in the title game.

Read more here: http://www.fresnobee.com/2013/11/24/3630539/sports-briefs-fresno-city-wins.html#storylink=cpy

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* Ohlone College 67 - Diablo Valley College 54

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* Foothill College 82 - Cañada College 60

+++++

Here's a report from Cosumnes River College basketball on the Hawks winning the James Clark Classic over the weekend. AJ Bridges earned MVP honors.

A bit on Derrick (Castro Valley High) Clayton

From Recruitscoop:
...In the night's final game, Delray Beach (Fla.) Elev8 Academy and Wilbraham (Mass.) Wilbraham & Monson locked horns in an entertaining game that went to overtime. Ultimately, it was the Elev8 backcourt of Western Kentucky bound Derrick Clayton and junior Reggie Reid who went for 27 each that made the difference.

A 6-foot-5 shooting guard from Oakland, Clayton is one of the biggest recruiting steals in the country. The thin wing can shoot the ball with range, he can create off the dribble and he's an athletic finisher at the cup. He likes the big moment and big shot and just needs to get stronger...
In the night's final game, Delray Beach (Fla.) Elev8 Academy and Wilbraham (Mass.) Wilbraham & Monson locked horns in an entertaining game that went to overtime. Ultimately, it was the Elev8 backcourt of Western Kentucky bound Derrick Clayton and junior Reggie Reid who went for 27 each that made the difference.
A 6-foot-5 shooting guard from Oakland, Clayton is one of the biggest recruiting steals in the country. The thin wing can shoot the ball with range, he can create off the dribble and he's an athletic finisher at the cup. He likes the big moment and big shot and just needs to get stronger.
- See more at: http://recruitscoop.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1579481#sthash.AjialOOd.dpuf

Farris and Taylor power HSU

Danny Penza writes about Parker Farris' last-second play in Humboldt State's 80-78 victory over Pacifica on Saturday.

Baker leads Alaska Anchorage to championship

Ronnie (Diablo Valley College) Baker's 29 points led Alaska Anchorage to an 83-75 victory over Fresno Pacific. Baker added five rebounds and four assists to his line. The win came in the championship game of the GCI Alaska Invitational.

Biola over AP

It was Biola over Azuza Pacific 83-78 on Sunday with center Mike (Woodcreek High) Kurtz producing 20 points, nine boards and three blocks for the victors. He shot 10-13 from the floor.

Former Yuba College and Inderkum High player Tyler Monroe enjoyed 21/7 for AP.

The Gaels win again

St. Mary's faced off in Moraga against Alcorn State Sunday night and won 72-55  -- this despite shooting 41%. Brad Waldow finished with 11 points, five boards and three assists

Manley aids in latest Kent State success

Dev (Castlemont High) Manley posted 14 points plus three rebounds and two assists in Kent State's 102-97 shootout versus Niagara on Sunday.

Davis topped by the Vikes

UC Davis fell 79-63 on Sunday against tournament host Portland State despite 17 points/10 boards from Josh (Forest Lake Christian High) Ritchart and Darius (Sacramento High) Graham's 10 points plus three assists.

Parker heats up

A point a minute was Jeffrey (Salesian High) Parker's pace as he scored 20 in 20 for Western Washington in its 113-85 victory over Quest on Sunday.

Sunday, November 24, 2013

JC scores from Saturday

* Cosumnes River College 81 - Chabot College 74 Boxscore

AJ Bridges scored 28 points and Jaycob Velasco added 20 for CRC.


* Merritt College 97 - Shasta College 85 Boxscore

Point Anthony Knight scored 24 points for the Thunderbirds.


* Los Medanos College 86 - Butte College 75 

Wayne Engelstad nailed six treys on his way to 23 points.

Tournament MVP: Wayne (Heritage High) Engelstad 


* Diablo Valley College 69 - Foothill College 60

Via the DVC Men's Basketball Facebook page: "Scoring leaders: Jermaine Edmonds 18, A.B. Najee 13


* Ohlone College 86 - Cañada College 64


* Feather River College 93 - Columbia College 83

Columbia’s nine-point halftime lead evaporated into a 93-83 loss to Feather River in the consolation final of the 35th James Clark Classic at Cosumnes River in Sacramento. The Claim Jumpers (4-3), who went 1-2 with a win over Alamada in the tournament, will return to Oak Pavilion for their home opener Tuesday against the William Jessup junior varsity.


Read more here: http://www.modbee.com/2013/11/23/3050316/another-big-game-for-bell-and.html#storylink=cpy

* Modesto Junior College 90 - College of the Redwoods 77

Josh Allen, the Pirates’ 6-7 forward, dominated with 32 points, 16 rebounds, five steals and four blocks during Modesto’s 90-77 win over Redwoods for the consolation title of Mendocino’s John Hogue Memorial Tournament. Allen earned an all-tournament selection for the Pirates (3-3), who also featured guard Eric Melgar with 18 points (all in the second half) and eight assists. Anthony Hubbard had 17 points and Keegan Sanchez 10 for the Pirates, who rallied from a 35-34 halftime deficit.


Read more here: http://www.modbee.com/2013/11/23/3050316/another-big-game-for-bell-and.html#storylink=cpy

* Napa Valley College 81 - Porterville Junior College 64 Boxscore


* Cabrillo College 67 - American River College 62

From the CC Men's Basketball site: "The Cabrillo College Seahawks improved their record to 3-2 on the season by defeating American River College (Sacramento) in overtime by a score of 67-62. Warren Jackson led the Seahawks with 12 points, 11 of which he scored in overtime. In all, seven Cabrillo players scored seven or more points, with A.J. Wright and Latrell Wilson scoring nine apiece. The Hawks advance to the consolation championship game against Merrit College (Oakland) at noon Sunday. "


* Reedley College 86 - San Jose City College 82 Boxscore


* College of the Siskiyous 79 - Mendocino College 74


* Lassen College 85 - Cuesta College 77 Boxscore


* Fresno City College 73 - Moorpark College 66 Boxscore

Sharp shooting it up

Portland athletics serves up a lengthy feature on former Santa Rosa Junior College marksman Bobby Sharp, who is starting the season very strong for the Pilots.

The Wildcats down Simpson

Chico State went into Redding and emerged with an 70-47 victory over Simpson last night as Luke Reid reports.

Ali's big night not enough

On Saturday, Texas A&M Corpus Christi fell 87-76 to Texas San Antonio despite the former getting 21 points (8-12 overall, 3-3 from long distance) from guard Hameed (San Leandro High) Ali. He also added four assists and a quartet of steals.

HSU by two over Pacifica

It was Humboldt State just getting by Pacifica, 80-78, last night way up in the redwoods. Out of Eureka High, freshman frontcourter Will Taylor scored 14 points and corralled eight rebounds for Lumberjacks.

One element that contributed to the closeness of the matchup was 1-24 shooting from long distance for HSU.

Scott's 25 just not enough

Lafayette dropped a close one in overtime to the New Jersey Institute of Techology 91-88 on Saturday in spite of a 25-point outburst by sophomore guard Bryce (Oak Ridge High) Scott. He went 8-12 overall, 4-8 from three-point range and 5-5 from the foul line.

Wright leads the Utes

In Utah's 71-57 Saturday night win over Savannah State, former CCSF talent Delon Wright provided 12 points, five rebounds, four steals, two assists and zero turnovers.

An en fuego DManley

Dev Manley apparently likes Fridays nights, this confirmed after the former Castlemont High guard scored 21 points in 30 minutes of action for Kent State against South Carolina Upstate. Manley buried seven treys in 10 attempts as a starter.

Davis nabs a victory

Up in Portland, the game went into overtime before UC Davis emerged with a 64-61 win on Saturday against Loyola Chicago. Ryan Sypkens, who scored 15 points on five three-pointers, nailed a trey at the buzzer to tie up the contest and pilfered a steal late in OT that led to a crucial basket.

Pacific over Fresno

Pacific welcomed visiting Fresno State in on Saturday and promptly took an 86-77 victory over the Mountain West Conference members. Former Santa Rosa Junior College guard Sama Taku enjoyed an impressive line for the Tigers: 16 points, nine rebounds and six assists. Teammate Tony Gill, out of Cosumnes River College, posted a well-rounded 12 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals.

For the Bulldogs, Tyler (St. Francis High) Johnson enjoyed 25 points, six boards and a trio of assists.

Utah State boots Mississippi State

In an unusual matchup, Utah State hosted an SEC team -- Mississippi State -- in Logan last night and came away an 87-78 winner. Spencer (Yuba College) Butterfield totaled 16 points plus six rebounds in 32 minutes of play. Aggie freshman JoJo (Dublin High) McGlaston was on the court for just five minutes but still scored five points.

New Mexico State handles UTEP

Kevin (Santa Rosa Junior College) Aronis contributed eight points (2-3 from long distance) in New Mexico State's 77-68 victory over visiting UTEP.

McKenzie (College Park High) Moore didn't play for the Miners due to the effects of a concussion.

The Anteaters fall to BU

Host UC Irvine fell to Boston last night 74-68 with the northern California connected player performing as follows: Will Davis with 12 points, eight rebounds (five offensively), two assists -- Chris McNealy with 10 points plus eight boards -- Travis Souza with nine point (three treys) and three caroms.

Saturday, November 23, 2013

JC scores from Friday night

* Diablo Valley College 68 - Cabrillo College 63

From the DVC Men's Basketball Facebook site: Joe (De La Salle High) McNiff 19pts (6 threes), Justin (Bishop O'Dowd) Yeargin and Eric (Bentley High) Ellis 11 each

It was six three-pointers for McNiff.

From the Santa Cruz Sentinel: "Latrell Wilson scored 12 points during Cabrillo College's 68-63 loss to Diablo Valley College at the Shasta College Tournament in Redding.
Melvin Lee followed with 11 points, while Warren Jackson and Allen Wilcher each scored 10 points..."

* Modesto Junior College 75 - Skyline College 54

* Columbia College 82 - College of Alameda 57

* Feather River College 84 - Merced College 78

* Foothill College 65 - American River College 62

* Lassen College 75 - College of the Sequoias 68 BOXSCORE

Meshawn (Oakland High) Beard totaled 22 points for the victors, going 6-10 from long distance.

* College of Marin 63 - West Valley College 59

* Los Medanos College 77 - College of the Siskiyous 71

Andrew (Antioch High) Cone led LMC with 16 points (three threes) and teammates Patrick (Mt. Diablo High) Lefiti double-doubled on 12 points plus 11 assists.

Cañada College 98 - Shasta College 84

* Fresno City College 49 - El Camino College 38 BOXSCORE

* Cosumnes River College 86 - Porterville College 68 BOXSCORE

* Butte College 91 - Mendocino College 53

* College of the Redwoods 91 - Las Positas College 78

* Ohlone College 97 - Merritt College 80

Casey (Newark Memorial High) Norris scored 21 points for the Renegades while achieving a double-double via 10 assists and Denzel (McClymonds High) Bellot nailed four treys on his way to a Thunderbird-team kleading 25 points.

* Chabot College 78 - Napa Valley College 63

Matt Simpkins posted a 10/10 double-double.

Andrews powers Sheridan

Sheridan College required overtime before winning 88-86 last night ahainst the treasure Valley Chukars:
...Jamir (Cublin High) Andrews answered, scoring the first 8 of the Generals 12 first points in the extra period. Andrews finished the game with 17 on 6-9 shooting...

The Slugs over Linfield

From the Santa Cruz Sentinel:
...Matthew Ponce scored 16 points and five assists to lead the UC Santa Cruz men's basketball team to a 76-67 win over Linfield at the Hilton Slugs Winter Tournament at Kaiser Permanente Arena on Friday.

Austin Steadman put up 15 points and 11 rebounds, while James (Sacramento High) Townsend also had 15 points and Jared Ponce finished with 12 points, three assists and two rebounds...
Ryan (Harker School/Foothill College) Cali scored 17 points and grabbed five rebounds for the Oregonians while Jackson (Bellarmine College Prep) Gion went for 11/5.

Both Coach Ron DuBois' (UCSC) and Coach Shannon Rosenberg's (Linfield) squads are back on the court tonight.

IUPUI almost takes down Northwestern

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis got thisclose to taking down Big Ten member and host Northwestern last night, only to fall 63-61. Former Berkeley High and DVC talent Khufu Najee posted a line of 11 points (5-10 shooting), four rebounds and two assists for the Hoosier squad.

Davis by five over SIUE

Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville has no antidote for Josh Ritchart last night falling 80-75 to UC Davis as part of a Portland State-based tournament. The senior frontcourter exploded for 35 points, 13 rebounds, two assists, two steals and two blocked shots. Ritchart shot 12-14 overall, 3-3 from long distance. Aggie freshman redshirt guard Darius Graham totaled seven points plus seven assists.

Irvine handles LIU-Brooklyn

UC Irvine hosted a visiting team from 3,000 miles away and didn't exactly roll out the Welcome Wagon as the Anteaters won 84-64 over LIU-Brooklyn. Backcourt senior Chris McNealy scored a team-leading 15 points and added four rebounds plus three assists.

Coming off a Big West Conference Player of the Week honor, frontcourt teammate Will Davis contributed 12 points, eight boards, three assists and a pair of blocked shots. Those two rejections elevated Davis the all-time Irvine leader in blocks and he still has this season and next to put his record really out of reach.

Friday, November 22, 2013

JC games for tonight

* Modesto Junior College - Skyline College

* College of Alameda - Columbia College

* Merced College - Feather River College

* Foothill College - American River College

* Lassen College - College of the Sequoias

* West Valley College - College of Marin

* Los Medanos College - College of the Siskiyous

Cañada College - Shasta College

* Fresno City College - El Camino College

* Porterville College - Cosumnes River College

* Butte College - Mendocino College

* Las Positas College - College of the Redwoods

* Merritt College - Ohlone College

* Chabot College - Napa Valley College

JC scores from Thursday night

* Mendocino College 65 - College of the Redwoods 64


* Napa Valley College 84 - Feather River College 76

* Las Positas College 70 - Butte College 63 -- LP Athletics has more

* Cosumnes River College 76 - Columbia College 48 -- BOXSCORE
 
* College of the Siskiyous 63 - Skyline College 61

* Chabot College 96 - Merced College 49 -- Chabot is now 5-0

* Los Medanos College 89 - Modesto Junior College 81

* Porterville College 88 - College of the Alameda 86 BOXSCORE

This is alarming

Jeff Jacobs has a lengthy column on sexual assaults pervading UConn athletics and offers a statistic that is extremely concerning:
...Here's the rub. A three-year national college study in the mid-1990s by Jeff Benedict and Todd Crossett showed that although male student-athletes make up 3.3 percent of the student population, they represent 19 percent of sexual assault and 35 percent of domestic violence perpetrators. The study also showed that the general population has a conviction rate of 80 percent, but for athletes it was 38 percent...
It would also be fascinating to determine student-athletes from which sports are most involved. For whatever reasons, male volleyball, water polo or track team members don't seem to be the ones being charged or convicted.

Normalcy among the ruins

Neither rain, nor sleet, nor hell on earth can stop these kids in the Philippines from participating on their favorite activity:


Josiah Turner located

Former Sacramento High backcourter Josiah Turner is listed as a member of the 2013-14 Los Angeles D-Fenders. He and his team will be on display regionally November 30 against the host Santa Cruz Warriors.

More from JR

Jeremy Russotti has posted his latest blog entry.

Bob Starkey: "what is your point guard development plan?"

Coach Bob Starkey writes about the criticality of point guard play.

":..he guarded like crazy" and as a freshman

Ken Cross writes about the restructuring of San Diego State basketball, with some press for D'Erryl Williams:
“I thought the last eight minutes, our defensive effort included a couple fresh bodies and when D’Erryl Williams came in, he was a spark,” said [Coach Steve] Fisher, “Even though you look at his statline and ask, ‘what did he do’, he guarded like crazy...

"The re-rise of Jeremy Lin"

Jay Caspian Kang takes a recent look at the play of Jeremy Lin vis-a-vis all the Lin-sanity phenomenon.

Mr. Wright wrong to Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon got bopped by host Utah and CCSF transfer Delon Wright in particular last night 79-54. The junior scored 17 points (8-8 shooting) and added five rebounds, four assists and three steals.

As Tony Jones tweeted: "Now Delon Wright is making it easy for others. Spoonfeeds Jeremy Olsen for a lay-up and a foul"

The Zags down WSU

Not unexpectedly, host Gonzaga took down Washington State 90-74 last night despite a well-rounded effort of 20 points, six rebounds and four assists by freshman backcourter Ike (Franklin High) Iroegbu. Sophomore teammate Junior Longrus contributed 3 boards, two points plus a blocked shot.

The Warriors blast the Vulcans

It was Hawaii over Hawaii Hilo last night 114-63 as former CCSF guard Quincy Smith finished with seven points and seven assists in 12 minutes on the court for the victors.

Smith starts but Vegas falls short

On Tuesday evening, Arizona State topped UNLV 86-80 in Vegas as Sun Devil guard Jahii Carson exploded with a 40-point output. For the Runnin' Rebels, freshman backcourter Kendall (Deer Valley High) Smith produced 13 points, four assists and three rebounds in 28 minutes as a starter.

McFerren & Ambrosini lauded

Nicholas Woodard/The Orion profiles Chico State's two-member recruiting class.

Dominican bops Pacifica

Dominican put away Pacifica last night 95-59 behind Christopher (Sacramento Waldorf High) Schwartz-Edmistin's 17 points as Tim Menicutch reports.

The Seawolves win

Missed this from Wednesday: Sonoma State downed Notre Dame de Namur 70-54 behind 19 points, nine boards and three steals from senior Sterling (Christian Brothers High) Arterberry.

Thursday, November 21, 2013

JC games tonight (Thursday)

Tonight, the pairings are:

* Mendocino College - College of the Redwoods

* Feather River College - Napa Valley College

* Butte College - Las Positas College

* Cosumnes River College - Columbia College

* College of the Siskiyous - Skyline College

* Chabot College - Merced College

* Modesto Junior College - Los Medanos College

* Porterville College - College of the Alameda

Stats for LPC

From the Las Positas College men's basketball site comes these numbers:
"...Davis Kimble leads the Hawks in scoring at 18.7 points a game and assists at 5.3. Steve Cazares and Jacob Contreras are also scoring in double figures at 15.7 and 14.3 points, respectively. The team's top rebounders are Jayson Rose (7.7), Justin Wolfe (7.3) and Uche Okpalaugo (7.0)..."
Kimble is a 5-foot-10 sophomore guard out of Hayward High.

Cazares is a 6-foot-0 sophomore guard out of College Park High.

Contreras is a 6-foot-2 sophomore out of Amador Valley High.

Rose is a 6-fppt-4 freshman center out of Irvington High.

Wolfe is a 6-foot-8 sophomore out of Foothill High.

Oklapaugo is a 6-foot-4 sophomore out of grandad High.

Coach Lon Rork's guys are currently 2-1.

Aja signs with ECU

Matt Bracken/Baltimore Sun writes about City College of San Francisco sophomore frontcourter Kanu Aja's plan to return back east via his East Carolina signing. Talk about persistence in the face of adversity for this young man.

Former North Carolina guard Jeff Lebo is the head coach at ECU. The Pirates are Conference USA members.

Ronnie Baker honored

Former Rodriguez High and Diablo Valley College talent Ronnie Baker has been named the Player of the Week on his own Alaska Nanook squad after averaging 17.5, four rebounds and three assists in two contests.

Lippi starting strong at Whitman

Former St. Joseph Notre Dame guard Dominic Lippi is in his third season at Whitman College and, in the one game played so far, he scored 17 points (4-5 from three-point range) on 30 minutes of action on opening night.

The bigs at UC Irvine

Don't know why Newsweek jumped into college basketball but John Walters digs into the big guys who share the frontcourt at UC Irvine. Will Davis, the best Anteater frontcourter, isn't mentioned because he's j-u-s-t 6-foot-8.

Gray leads West Georgia

On Tuesday night, West Georgia battered Point 84-51 with senior Lavon (Bellarmine College Prep/Ohlone College) Gray posting 15 points (7-8 shooting) in 21 minutes of court time for the Peach Staters. Gray added eight rebounds, three blocked shots and three steals.

Princeton over Lafayette

On Wednesday night, host Princeton bested Lafayette College 81-80 despite 12 points, five boards and a pair of assists by sophomore guard Bryce (Oak Ridge High) Scott.

The Bulldogs handle the Mustangs

Fresno State handled a cold-shooting visiting Cal Poly last night, winning 63-46. The Mustangs shot 32% overall, going 2-17 from long distance.

Bulldog Tyler (St. francis High) Johnson didn't shoot well but finished with nine boards, six points and two assists.

SJSU wins over Pepperdine

San Jose State University went to Malibu last night and emerged with its initial 2013 victory, 83-77 versus Pepperdine.

In eight minutes of play for the Spartans, freshman Dylan (Weston Ranch High) Alexander produced six points (2-3 from long distance) plus three rebounds.

For the Wave, senior Brendan (Rocklin High/UCLA) Lane finished with 23 points, nine boards and six blocked shots in 29 minutes.

Previewing Solano College men's basketball

Matt O'Donnell looks at Coach John Nagle's Solano Falcons, a team looking to make the playoffs this season.

Previewing CRC

From the Missed This Earlier Department: Camille Caulk previews the 2013-14 Cosumnes River College squad.

Checking in on the Davis Aggies

Bruce Gallaudet looks at the emphasis UC Davis putting on defense this week plus former Darius Graham receives some positive press.

Delly does it

Simon Tryzna writes about Matthew Dellavedova enjoying the game of his professional life last night.

Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Where's Wesonga?

In the vein of 'Where's Waldo?' -- does anyone know the location of Stuart Wesonga? He was at City College of San Francisco, then Santa Rosa Junior College where he was sidelined by an injury.The last word was him heading to Indian Hills College in Iowa, a national power, but he isn't currently listed on the roster there.

Background

More background

Is he still injured?

What you need to get out of being an assistant coach

Bert DeSalvo shares his experiences as a college assistant coach and the 'musts' assistants need to get from their bosses.

The Pioneers add a quartet

Steve Connolly breaks down the first full recruiting class of Cal State East Bay Coach Gus Argenal. It contains a trio of northern California talents.

Catching up with Rodrick Bobbitt

Rodrick (Castro Valley High) Bobbitt is back playing for Indian Hills College (Iowa) this season and has started strong: 22 points on opening night followed by 20 points, eight rebounds and five steals in game two.

AAU Top Third Grade Team Try-Out

1% CLUB Founder Jeremy Russotti is putting together an Elite Third Grade AAU team. The try-out has been set to this Saturday, November 23 from 6:00 p.m..-7:30 p.m. It will be held at Manzanita Recreation Center, 630 Drake Avenue, Marin City, CA 94965.

This is for third graders who will play up at the fourth grade level. This isn't a "Pay to Play" type situation where we are looking for numbers. We are looking for motivated, upper level (skill) players.

The team will have practice/training 1-2 times a week and will be based out of Marin County. The team consists of players ranging from North Bay, Marin County, and East Bay primarily at this point.  

Below is a link to the type of training that will be provided:


For more information, please call (707) 849-1212 or email info@jglove.com before Saturday.

Medford deciding today

Last bight from Brad Winton: "Lester Medford of Indian Hills CC will decide tomorrow between St. Mary's and Baylor. Plans on signing tomorrow as well."

He's a 5-foot-10 very quick point and out of the state of Arizona so he knows the Bennett brand well. In September, he hit Iowa State and Baylor as well as Moraga on recruiting visits.

UPDATE: Medford went with Baylor.

The Otters over the Urban Knights

It went into overtime before Cal State Monterey Bay topped Academy of Art University last night 91-87 in a thoroughly entertaining matchup.

Art U's Alex Carmon exploded for 36 points while local and freshman Herman (Sacred Heart Cathedral Prep) Pratt contributed 11 points and four rebounds as a member of the Urban Knights starting lineup.

The Gators over the Warriors

San Francisco State took down host William Jessup University last night -- 77 to 57 -- as William Overton Jr. went for 26 points, including a remarkable 5-7 from long distance. Nefi Perdomo contributed 18 points plus eight assists to the Gators cause.

Zitani honored

Daniel Zitani has been honored as the Northwest Conference Men's Basketball Student-Athlete of the Week. The former Diablo Valley College talent is a senior.

A tip o' the hat goes out to the DVC Men's Basketball Facebook page for this item.

The Lumberjacks roll

As Danny Penza writes, the return of David Howard galvanized a team effort as Humboldt State took down Pacific Union College last night 115-81.

Here's a very interesting and informative feature on Pacific Union basketball.

Whither USF?

Jorge Contreras has a very candid Rex Walters calling out his USF basketball team. The practices on The Hilltop must be might interesting this week.

The latest on Diamon Simpson

Former St. Mary's and Hayward High star Diamon Simpson is back playing in Israel.

Zona whips RI

Rhode Island came 3,000 miles to face Arizona last night and the Wildcats made the Rams regret the journey with an 87-59 whupping. Brandon Ashley went for 15 points plus six rebound while Aaron Gordon added 12/7.

Bruce Pascoe writing about what Coach Sean Miller had to say post-game about Ashley:
Ashley is also on an upward track. Over five games, he’s shooting 70 percent from the field, taking 3.8 free throws per game, grabbing 7.2 rebounds per game, and scoring an average of 12 points.

Miller said he could be UA’s most important player because of what he’s doing on offense and defense. On offense, a pass to Ashley often winds up being a good thing for the Wildcats.

“We’re constantly looking to get him the ball in good position because he’s getting fouled or scoring at a very high rate,” Miller said. “He’s improving as well. I hate to say it, but when you’re a freshman and you become a sophomore it’s amazing at how much better you get.

“Part of the progression with Brandon is that he was an 18-year-old freshman on a very good team. Now he’s a 19 year old sophomore on what will hopefully be a better team. He’s just better. He had a good offseason, he’s smarter and I think the best is yet to come for him.”

The Miners score Moore

Host UTEP faced Colorado State and emerged with an 82-74 victory last night as sophomore guard McKenzie (College Park High) Moore produced a team-leading 17 points plus four boards and a trio of assists.

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Meet Matt Okada

Matt Okada is in his second year as an assistant under Head Coach Tyson Aye, last season at Imperial Valley College and this year with Allan Hancock College in Santa Maria.

So what was his path to his current position?

The native of Hawaii moved with his family to Los Angeles when he was two years old. Drawn to basketball, he played at Narbonne High in Harbor City. Simultaneously, he participated in martial arts and currently ranks as a second degree black belt.

After graduation, Okada moved north to attend Pacific in the sports management degree program. Not formally playing any longer, he earned a spot as a student manager under now retired Tiger Coach Bob Thomason.

As part of his degree requirement, Okada took an internship with the Philadelphia 76ers, performing public relations, marketing, and community relations duties during his junior year.

That's when he was visited by an epiphany.

"I was close to the game but more on the business side," Okada recalled. "It made me realize I wanted to be a coach because I wasn't close enough."

Upon his return to California, Ken Green and Scooter Bloom of St. Mary's High School gave him the opportunity to coach for the Stockton Mavericks, a club team.

After graduation, Okada became the Pacific video coordinator.

"Pacific's sustained success is predicated on preparation. It's a very detail-oriented program that really got me ready for my current position," Okada explained.

When an opening occurred on Tyson Aye's Imperial Valley College staff, Okada was recommended by now Pacific Head Coach Ron Verlin.

"I jumped right into it. I was game planning, doing scouting reports, recruiting, working with the players -- you have to wear a lot of hats."

That was the 2012-13 season.

Then the head coaching position at Allan Hancock College opened up and Aye was hired. Okada came along for the new venture.

One big difference already noted is that rather than convincing talent to come to the desert, "we're 15 minutes from the beach. Cal Poly, UC Santa Barbara and Westmont College are 45 minutes from us. It's much easier to recruit."

Okada's initial signee was Serra High's Andre Miller. "He reached out after deciding not to go with any of the four year offers he received."

The Bulldogs are 3-3 thus far this season, with a pair of victories over College of the Sequoias and one against Bakersfield while coming up short versus City College of San Francisco, Fresno City College and West Hills College.

So what words of wisdom would he offer to those considering entry into the coaching ranks?

"The best advice I got early on happened during my junior year at the Final Four in Detroit." Not being financially flush, he slept on a friend's hotel floor. While riding a bus to the games, current St. Francis associate head coach Mike Summey told him the mantra that was necessary to enter coaching: "no task too small."

"As a manager without a decorated playing career, the only way to separate yourself is with hard work," Okada said.

To borrow from SI: the apocalypse is upon us

Frank Burlison pulls no punches in writing about Cliff Alexander's 'hat trick' at a press conference in announcing his choice of college: "Shame on kids, parents, "coaches" and ESPN for the "pick a hat" bullshit. insulting to coaches who worked their asses off to recruit them."

Mark Isenberg chimes in: "If recruits are acting like clowns on TV, let's not forget who created this circus."

But there's also this: via Shannon Ryan: "I think the craziest part of the day was that the school sold tickets (even to students) to watch Alexander announce his decision."

Ryan also wrote: "...he explained of the feint that seemed simultaneously to deflate and infuriate Illini fans: “It's something my teammates thought I should do.”

For reference:

Parker (and others) and the NBA

Lotta love already for Duke freshman Jabari Parker -- check out this line: “Like if he left Duke right now and said, ‘I’m leaving,’ he would be Utah’s best player. He would be a lot of teams’ best player.”

Andrew Wiggins and Juluis Randle are also receiving major NBA love. When will Aaron Gordon be included?