Article 406: Crusaders march on

March 18, 2015

Modesto Christian overcame a packed, rowdy crowd in San Mateo to defeat Serra 53-48 and advance to the regional finals of the 2015 CIF State Open Division playoffs.

The Padres rushed out to a 10-2 early advantage and a 18-12 first quarter lead as senior Jimmy Wohrer scored eight of his team high 15 points in the quarter. Serra maintained that six point advantage at 29-23 at halftime before extending to a game high 10 point margin early in the third quarter.

The Crusaders used their interior tandem of Anthony Townes and Robinson Idehen to rally 43-41 to end the quarter. Serra had trouble scoring in the final quarter while Modesto Christian continued to use their size advantage to win 53-48.

Serra finishes the season at 23-6 after going further in the West Catholic League and in the postseason than preseason expectations. No player on Serra had more than four rebounds as the team totaled 19 rebounds for the game. However, Serra's 18 field goal makes resulted in 16 total assists. 6-foot-10 Jack Wilson, only a freshman, and junior forward Jake Killingsworth will be the pillars for next year's team as they battled hard against the Crusader post players.

Modesto Christian dominated the boards in the second half as the Crusaders had 35 total rebounds with senior Townes, a Pacific commit, and junior Christian Ellis grabbing 10 rebounds each. Townes and Idehen each made eight field goals to score 19 and 18 points respectively. Ellis and senior Jeff Wu, a Sacramento State commit, played more intense perimeter defense during the second half as Serra only had one 3-point make. Modesto Christian's 17 offensive rebounds gave them 14 more field goal attempts than Serra for the game.

The Crusaders hit the 30 win mark as they move to 30-3. Modesto Christian faces Bishop O'Dowd in the regional finals as the Dragons won 75-57 against Folsom.

Modesto Christian's starting five is strong but the roster goes only seven deep. Bishop O'Dowd has a deeper rotation in addition to national prospect, Ivan Rabb, Boise State commit Paris Austin, Isaiah Thomas who is headed to Northern Arizona.

Last season, Modesto Christian lost to Bishop O'Dowd twice, including a season ending 74-51 loss in the Open Division playoffs.

Article 405: WCAL Madness

January 15, 2015

Last year's Serra and Archbishop Riordan regular season West Catholic Athletic League games were offensive battles (Serra 64-63 2OT in San Mateo and Riordan 52-44 in San Francisco) when compared to the first meeting this season. Both teams came into the game with identical 9-3 (1-1 league) records as Serra won 33-32 in this defensive struggle. Both teams still have many question marks as league play continues.

Based on the starting lineup, Riordan had a size and an athletic advantage with 6-foot-8 Karim N'Diaye and 6-foot-3 Eddie Stansberry. However, the Padres play 10 deep with interchangeable players ranging from 6-foot-0 to 6-foot-5. 6-foot-9 freshman Jack Wilson is on the roster and was on the bench but did not see any game time.

Neither team had more than a two-possession advantage as the Crusaders had a first quarter 7-6 lead and a halftime 20-16 advantage. The Padres won the third quarter and lead 26-25 after three before holding on for the 33-32 win.

The leading scorer was junior Jeremiah Testa who came off the bench for Serra to tally seven points and tied for a game high eight rebounds. Serra head coach Chuck Rapp said after the game that this team's sum is much greater than its individual players. The Padres played tenacious defense all over the court, won the majority of the 50-50 balls, and caused several jump ball situations. Conversely, the team has no playmakers that can create offense when the half-court offense stagnates and the guards had some difficulty breaking the full court press.

Serra goes to 10-3 and plays Sacred Heart Cathedral and Archbishop Mitty in their next two games as these two teams have either athletic playmakers or superior size. The Padres already lost to a bigger St Francis team. The outcome of the next two games will indicate where the Padres are in the WCAL pecking order.

Riordan's main players of N'Diaye and Stansberry had five and four points respectively. The Crusaders missed all seven of their 3-point attempts and the team committed 21 turnovers. The team drops to 9-4 and faces St Ignatius next.

Like Serra, the Crusaders lost to St Francis already and will also be tested by Sacred Heart Cathedral and Archbishop Mitty later in the season. But Riordan will have to play more efficiently and more team-oriented to have a chance in those games.

Article 404: Classic: Final Report

December 31, 2014

In the final day of the 12th MaxPreps Holiday Classic on Tuesday, the three games involving the four Northern California teams all were contested battles that came down to the final quarter. Here is our final report.

Folsom 62, Archbishop Mitty 59
In a battle between the No. 2 and No. 3 teams in the most recent NCP Boys Basketball Top 20, Folsom was able to rally from a huge third quarter deficit to bolster their claim to the No. 2 ranking.

Folsom had a slow start to this game as the Bulldogs could only muster 12 points in total in the first half to trail 33-12 to the Monarchs. Ben Kone was the offensive leader in the first half with 10 points while the Mitty guards attacked the offensive rebounds that led to put backs and second chance points.

Jordan Ford was scoreless for the Bulldogs in the first half but came out firing in the third quarter. He hit four and three 3-pointers respectively in the latter two quarters. Folsom outscored Mitty 29-9 to cut the deficit to 42-41 after the third quarter. Kone and Sebastian Much scored early baskets in the fourth quarter to pad the lead, but Ford accounted for 15 out of the team's 21 fourth quarter points including six clutch free throws to help Folsom rally for the 62-59 victory.

Folsom goes to 11-2 with this win. Outside of league play, the Bulldogs have a matchup with Monte Vista on Jan 10. Folsom's success is directly related to Ford's numbers as he was able to create his shot off the dribble or to pull up with a quick release perimeter stroke. His only memorable shooting flaw in the Mitty victory was his lone free throw miss when the Bulldogs were shooting the penalty. Colin Russell had 13 points and can be expected for a double-double on the stats sheet for most of their remaining games. The key for Russell is if he can be a defensive intimidator in the post against shorter teams and if he can win the post matchups when battling a true post player. In the Mitty victory, Kone outplayed Russell on both ends. After Ford and Russell, the Bulldogs need a third scoring option to lessen their contributions.

Mitty drops to 6-3 and have some open questions as league play starts. The post play could be the answer as Kone had 21 points in the Folsom loss and can be penciled in for 20 plus points and 10 plus rebounds per game. 6-foot-7 sophomore Sebastian Much had 15 points while he provides additional size in the post and has good length and form on his perimeter game. Dakari Monroe looks like the third scoring option as he is a slasher and creates points on his pressure defense. The other Mitty guards look to be spot up shooters who have many open looks as opposing defenses have to handle Kone and Much in the interior. But these guards are undersized and often have difficulty breaking the press. 6-foot 4 Riley Grigsby is an intriguing piece as he has good size and length but still plays tentative at times as a freshman. Mitty is still the favorite to win league but is not a lock.

Sacramento 58, American Fork (UT) 55
Sacramento defeated a bigger but less athletic and less aggressive American Fork team. The Dragons pressure defense helped them take a 15-10 first quarter advantage. The Utah team has Brandon Bailey, who is an Arizona State commit and the son of Thurl Bailey. At 6-foot-8, he has a perimeter release that is difficult to guard as he kept hitting his shots to help American Fork lead 34-30 at the half and 49-45 after the third quarter. A combination of Sacramento's swarming defense and American Fork's passing ineptitude allowed the Dragons to rally for the 58-55 victory. American Fork threw several post passes away including a few that hit the rim accidentally and they threw their last two inbounds passes erroneously to end the game.

Sacramento goes to 8-3 and still has non-league games with Bishop O'Dowd and Sacred Heart Cathedral to test their post play. The Dragons only size is with juniors Solomon Young and Christian Terrell who had 11 and 10 points respectively in the win. Young dominates the paint in terms of rebounding and block shots while playing the offensive post position with a linebacker mentality. Terrell has length and good versatility as he is tasked with defending the opposing team's most dangerous scorer. During the four game event, the Dragons did not have a consistent third option. All the other players are essentially interchangeable guards who press and scrap relentlessly on the defense. Sophomore Sayvon Hines was a key perimeter contributor in the first two games but less so in the latter two. Senior Stevie Matthews had 14 points in the American Fork victory as he goes hard to the basket. More importantly, he was a tenacious defender as he had to defend against a much taller player in the post but he held his own. If either Young or Terrell have early foul trouble, then it is hard to see how the Dragons can compete effectively with limited size.

Moreau Catholic 64, Alemany 60
Moreau Catholic jumped out to a 19-11 first quarter lead against Alemany. Damari Milstead had 21 points, 8 assists, and 3 steals as 11 of his points came in the first half to give the Mariners the 37-28 halftime advantage. Moreau Catholic looked to cruise to victory, as they were ahead 53-40 after three. A flurry of turnovers allowed Alemany to narrow the deficit at 57-56 with less than three minutes left but the Mariners righted the ship with clutch free throw shooting to win 64-60.

Moreau Catholic goes to 5-5 as all five losses are against non Northern California teams. Arguably, the Mariners performed best at this event as their two losses were against the literal tall tasks of Mater Dei and Prestonwood (TX). Outside of league play, an MLK matchup with Archbishop Mitty would be an interesting battle of the two team's high level 2016 and 2017 prospects.

Oscar Frayer had 15 points in the Alemany victory. Milstead and Frayer were the most consistent and effective scorers for the Mariners in the four game event. Frayer shot the ball with confidence, created off the dribble, and was aggressive in rebounding and challenging opposing shots. Milstead was coming off of a suspension to make his season debut. In this final game, he drove and finished at the basket several occasions as he has an extra gear in the open court. The elusive third scoring option is still an unknown for the Mariners. Terrell Brown played well in Milstead's absence but contributed less in the four games here. Brandon Lawrence and Armond Simmons were key contributors in past seasons but have not gotten any consistency this season yet.

Additional Notes
College head coaches in attendance during the winter viewing period for the four games included Arizona (Miller), San Diego State (Fisher), USC (Enfield), and Washington (Romar). Assistant head coaches include Arizona State, Pacific, Pepperdine, San Diego State, and UC Riverside.

The original seeding of the Open Division was:
No. 1 - Sierra Canyon, Calif.
No. 2 - Mater Dei, Calif.
No. 3 - Prestonwood, TX
No. 4 - Etiwanda, Calif.

Unseeded Pebblebrook High of Georgia, which is coached by a George Washington, took the tournament by storm by defeating Damien, Calif. in its opening round. Then, it took out Prestonwood and Mater Dei before losing to Sierra Canyon 67-66. Mater Dei defeated Etiwanda for the third place game to place three Southern California teams in the top four of the event.

None of the four Northern California teams were initially seeded in the top four and they finished as such:
No. 7 - Moreau Catholic went 2-2
No. 11 - Sacramento High went 2-2
No. 13 - Folsom went 2-2
No. 14 - Archbishop Mitty went 1-3

Capital Christian finished 2-2 in the Gear to the Max Division.
Benicia High was in the event in the Field of 64. They went 2-2.
Sutter High (2-2) was in the event in the Field of 64.