The SoCal JUCO Shootout took place July 17 & 18 at Cerritos College, featuring 33 teams (29 from schools plus 3 independent teams and one from Vandenberg Air Force Base).
I attended 15 games over the two days featuring a total of 27 teams (25 school teams).
Here is a game-by-game summary of those games.
Bakersfield 53, Rio Hondo 43:
Lawrence Moore scored 17 pts and Joe Johnson scored 15 as Bakersfield pulled away late for a 10-point victory in a battle between two 2015 playoff teams.
Bakersfield started the game with a 6-0 run and led, 12-4, midway through the first half. Rio Hondo rallied to tie the score at 14 with 4:30 left in the first half, but Bakersfield went back in front and held a 21-18 lead at the half.
Rio Hondo took a 24-23 lead early in the second half after a 3-point play by Justin Elliott, but Bakersfield went right back in front and led the rest of the way. A 3-pointer by Dequan Green made it 44-39. Green helped seal the win with a 2-point free throw in the final minute, and Sky Seay added a 3-point play with 33.7 seconds to go to clinch the win.
Moore finished with a game-high 17 pts plus 7 rebs, 2 steals and an assist. Johnson had 15 pts, 7 rebs, 2 steals and an assist. Green had 13 pts, 3 rebs and 3 asts.
For Rio Hondo, Elliott had a team-high 14 pts plus 5 rebs and 2 asts. Leo Maidana had 8 pts on 4-for-6 from the floor and 4 rebs.
Cypress 50, Mira Costa 44
Jeremy Wright scored 16 pts, including 8 points in the final minute to secure a 6-point win for Cypress over Mira Costa.
Mira Costa led, 14-7, midway through the first half, but Cypress went on a 10-3 run to tie the score at 17. Mira Costa held a 23-19 lead at the half, but Cypress went on a 9-0 run to take a 28-25 lead early in the second half.
The lead changed hands several times after that until Cypress took a 36-33 lead on a 3-pointer by Nolan Kelly. But Cypress held just a 3-point lead at 42-39 after Buddha Boyd scored from in close for Mira Costa and the game clock crossed the one-minute mark.
Three times in that final minute Mira Costa fouled Wright, and three times he went to the line and calmly made a 2-point free throw to keep Cypress in front. Then in the final seconds he stole the ball near midcourt and scored with 11.4 seconds left to make it 50-44 and clinch the win for Cypress.
Wright led all scorers with his 16 pts. Austin Payne came off the bench for 11 pts, and Jordan Fleck had 9 pts, a game-high 10 rebs and 4 steals. Josh Currenton had a solid game with 6 pts and 6 rebs.
For Mira Costa, Boyd scored a team-high 12 pts and added a team-high 7 rebs and a game-high 5 asts. Kamien Cederlind came off the bench for 10 pts, including a pair of threes, on 4-for-6 from the floor.
Palomar 66, Victor Valley 65:
Victor Valley led for virtually the entire game, but Palomar rallied late and got the win when Spencer Benson made a 2-point free throw with 27.1 seconds left following a steal as the Comets literally stole a win from the Rams.
Victor Valley started the game with a 6-0 run, led by 13 points in the first half and by 11 in the second half. Before Benson's free throw, Palomar's only lead of the game came after Deven Riley gave the Comets a 10-9 lead. And that time Victor Valley went right back into the lead, building a 28-15 advantage late in the first half.
Victor Valley led, 40-31, at the half, and pushed its lead back to double figures after a driving lay-up by Darius Dayle that made it 50-39 several minutes into the second half.
Palomar rallied to get within a point at 55-54 with just under five minutes left, but Victor Valley clung to the lead as the clock wound down. It was still 65-64 in favor of the Rams, who had the ball with under 30 seconds to play.
Then Benson tapped the ball away from behind for the steal and headed towards the basket. He got the ball but was fouled; his good free throw gave Palomar its first lead of the second half.
Victor Valley still had a chance to go back in front, but Shawn Benn missed a 3-pointer as the final buzzer sounded.
Ryan Schaefer scored a game-high 18 pts, including 4 three-pointers, and added 5 rebs, 2 asts and a steal for Palomar. Riley had 16 pts, 5 rebs, 4 asts and a steal, and Benson had 14 pts, 3 rebs, 2 asts and 2 steals.
For Victor Valley, Lance Page scored a team-high 14 pts and also had 4 rebs. Dayle had 11 pts off the bench, and Jared Montgomery scored 9. Timell Thomas had 8 pts, 4 asts and 2 steals.
The Revolution 83, Team Independent 62:
Domonique Alexander (Three Rivers) scored 13 pts and Elijah Gaines (Long Beach) had 11 pts, 7 rebs, 4 asts and 2 steals as The Revolution raced past Team Independent en route to a perfect 4-0 record.
A virtual all-star team assembled and coached by Julio Lopez, The Revolution jumped out to a quick 12-3 lead. Team Independent - also a collection of players from various schools - rallied to take a 17-13 lead midway through the first half.
But then The Revolution went on a 16-0 run to take control and led the rest of the way. The Revolution led, 44-34, at the half, and extended the lead beyond 20 points with more than six minutes to play.
Alexander finished with 13 pts, 6 rebs and 5 blocked shots. Gaines had 11 pts plus the game-high total of 7 rebs. Isaiah Hicks (Cloud County) had 10 pts. Brian Chambers (Fresno) had 9 pts, 5 rebs and a game-high 5 asts. Winston Egwu had 9 pts and 6 rebs. Kamal Holden (Antelope Valley) had 8 pts on 4-for-5 shooting plus 5 rebs, 2 asts, a block and a steal.
For Team Indepdendent, Micah Winn (Cerritos) scored a game-high 18 pts and grabbed a team-high 5 rebs as the team's center; he was a guard at Cerritos but at 6-3 was the tallest player on the Independent team. Eric Duncan (Lassen) scored 16 pts and added 3 rebs and 2 steals. Dreymon Jones (El Camino) had 8 pts and 4 rebs in one half after arriving just before halftime.
Saddleback 44, East LA 41:
Charles Trotter scored 15 pts and Lyle Hexom had 9 pts and 5 rebs to lead Saddleback to a narrow win over East LA in a rematch of the 2015 California State Championship game.
On the very same court just over four months ago, Saddleback edged East LA, 50-47, to capture the state championship. This time around the Gauchos prevailed again - and by three points, again - though the outcome came down to the final seconds.
After Trotter made a 2-point free throw with 16.2 seconds left, Saddleback held a 44-39 lead and seemed in control. But East LA's Chandler Redix made a jumper with 7.5 seconds left to make it 44-41. And after a Saddleback turnover, East LA got the chance to tie the score when Redix was fouled attempting a 3-point shot with 0.4 seconds left.
But Redix, who led ELAC in scoring with 9 points on 4-for-4 from the floor, missed the shot, allowing the Gauchos to hold on for the win.
As a postscript...about two hours later Redix redeemed himself by making the game-winning jumper in overtime as East LA edged Antelope Valley, 51-49.
San Diego City 50, Moorpark 48:
Mister Lewis scored 12 pts and Marcus Brumsey scored 10 as SD City nursed a slim lead the entire second half and held on for a 2-point win over Moorpark.
Moorpark held a 25-24 lead at the break, but SD City took a 27-25 lead when Jaire Roberts took a pass from Taylor Nelson, scored and was fouled for the automatic 3-point play to start the second half.
And SD City held that lead throughout the second half. A 3-pointer by Nelson pushed the Knights' lead to as many as 9 points at 48-39 with 3:15 remaining. Moorpark got a 3-pointer from Justin Eisen with 31 seconds left and a lay-up from Joshua Brooks just ahead of the final horn before running out of time.
Lewis led SD City with his 12 pts, which came on 5-for-7 from the floor. Brumsey had 10 pts plus 3 rebs and team-highs of 4 asts and 3 steals. Jonathan Smith had 6 pts and a game-high 7 rebs.
For Moorpark, Brooks scored a game-high 16 pts. Reggie Dixon had 12 pts and 5 rebs. Chris Fields came off the bench and dished out a team-best 4 asts.
Merritt 53, Mt. San Jacinto 51 (OT)
Karim Helalil made a key 3-pointer and the winning shot in overtime and Ben Albright hit the game-tying three in the final seconds in a miracle comeback for Merritt against Mt. San Jacinto.
Mt. San Jacinto led by 10 points at the half and for virtually all of the second half, and held what seemed an insurmountable 6-point advantage with under 15 seconds to play. But Helalil made a three with 11.2 seconds to go to make it a one-possession game.
Then Mt. San Jacinto turned the ball over by stepping on the sideline with 7.2 seconds left. At that point Albright - who had not played a second in the game - entered the game.
When play re-started, the ball went to Albright, who did his best Steve Novak impersonation and drained a three-pointer with 2 seconds left to play. Novak has appeared in over 400 games over the past decade, often just for a few seconds at a time to attempt an important 3-point shot.
Then in sudden-death overtime, Helalil made a jumper from near the free throw line to give Merritt the victory. Amazingly it was Merritt's only win on the weekend. And it was Mt. San Jacinto's only loss.
Lewis Hayes led Merritt with 14 pts, and Lamont Banks scored 10. A.J. Benson had 8 pts, 3 asts and 2 steals, and Helalil came off the bench for 8 pts and 3 asts. And though Albright had just the 3 points he came through when it mattered most.
For Mt. San Jacinto, Orlando Quinones scored a game-high 15 pts on 7-for-10 from the floor and grabbed 8 rebs. Roosevelt Adams had a double-double with 12 pts and a game-high 12 rebs. Pee Wee Gardner had 8 pts, 3 asts and 3 steals, and Tre Nottingham had 7 pts, 3 rebs, 3 asts and a steal.
Orange Coast 62, Sequoias 46:
Jamaal Lee had 12 pts, 9 rebs and 3 asts, and Alex Weber scored 12 pts on 4-for-4 from the floor as Orange Coast pulled away in the second half for an easy win over College of the Sequoias.
Orange Coast jumped out to an early 14-5 lead, thanks largely to Weber, who made three shots and two threes to that point. Then he added a 2-point free throw to make it 16-5. OCC eventually led by 17 points at 24-7 and seemed on its way to a rout.
But Seqouias battled back, cutting the deficit to five points to trail, 30-25, at the half. A steal & lay-up by Derick Check in the final seconds of the half closed out an 18-6 run to end the half.
But in the second half, Orange Coast started to pull away again, scoring the first nine points of the half. COS cut the margin to single digits one last time to trail, 43-36, but then Orange Coast finally did pull away.
Kyle Mitchell led Sequoias with 8 pts and 5 rebs. But overall it was something of a lost weekend for COS, which not only lost all four of its games but had to borrow jerseys from host Cerritos after leaving theirs behind in Visalia.
Long Beach 55, Sierra 46:
Rolland Pearsall came off the bench to score 12 pts as Long Beach overcame a ragged start to win going away against Sacramento-area Sierra College.
Sierra jumped out to a 15-4 lead in the early going and seemed primed to win in a rout. But Long Beach cut the margin to four points after a 3-pointer by Pearsall made it 24-20, and trailed by five points at the half.
Midway through the second half, Long Beach took a 43-42 after back-to-back 3-pointers by Bonyosckar Reyes and Isaac Stell and led the rest of the way. A basket by Jammaal Roebuck off a pass from Stell made it 45-42.
A 2-point free throw by Pearsall pushed LBCC's lead to five at 49-44. A steal by Jeremiah Blandin led to a basket by Manny Correa with just under a minute left to make it 53-46 and put LBCC in control. One more 2-point free throw by Pearsall with 14.5 seconds left sealed the win for the Vikings.
Pearsall finished with a team-high 12 pts and also had 3 rebs, 3 asts and a steal. Blandin had 10 pts and a team-high 7 rebs. Correa also had 10 pts.
For Sierra, Joseph Harrison had 12 pts on a perfect 5-for-5 from the floor and he made his only free throw attempt. He also grabbed a game-high 10 rebs for the double-double. Antonio Lewis had 10 pts and Davis Wade came off the bench for 8 pts.
Cerritos 58, San Diego Mesa 34:
Cerritos used a deep bench and a suffocating defense to post its 4th win of the weekend, forcing Mesa to miss 27 of its first 29 shots from the floor en route to a 24-point victory.
No player scored more than 7 points for the Falcons. But 15 different players played and each of them scored at least two points. Cerritos also registered 14 assists on 19 made baskets.
But the real story was the Cerritos defense, which held Mesa to 8% shooting from the floor (2-for-26) and just 12 points in the first half. Mesa also missed its first 3 shots of the second half, and Cerritos pushed its lead to as many as 30 points after a 3-pointer by Semaj Moore made it 48-18 midway through the second half.
Terrance Jackson led Mesa with 10 pts on 3-for-5 from the floor. David Jones had 5 pts and game-highs of 8 rebbs and 4 blocked shots.
Fresno 61, Antelope Valley 58:
Logan Dorn scored 14 pts and Jaffrey Stillman scored 12 as Fresno rallied from a first-half deficit, coming alive in the second half to edge Antelope Valley by three points.
Fresno, which entered the game coming off a 28-point drubbing at the hands of Mt. San Jacinto, fell behind, 15-8, after AVC went on an 11-0 run midway through the first half. The Marauders still led by five points at the half, even after Gerard Andrus drained a three for Fresno just ahead of the halftime horn to make it 28-23.
But in the second half, the Fresno caught fire. The Rams shot a strong 52% from the floor, which included 5 three-pointers, and committed just 4 turnovers. They also made all 5 of their free throw attempts, each of which counted for two points, and totaled 38 points in the half.
Dorn gave Fresno a 35-31 lead after back-to-back 3-pointers early in the second half. A three by Taylor Freeman pushed Fresno's lead to seven at 45-38. AVC got within a point at 47-46 and still trailed by just three with a minute to go, but a 3-point play by Chris Daniels with 38.9 seconds left made it 57-51 and kept Fresno in control.
AVC made one final charge, cutting the deficit to three points when Jalen Etienne made a 3-point free throw with 13 seconds left to make it 59-56. But the Marauders were forced to foul, and Daniels made a 2-point free throw with 11.3 seconds left to make it 61-56 and clinch the win for the Rams.
Dorn finished with a game-high 14 pts, including 4 threes. Stillman had 12 pts on 4-for-4 from the floor and 2-for-2 from the line, and he also grabbed a game-high 6 rebs. Josh Sykes had 9 pts, 2 rebs and 3 blocked shots. Andrus came off the bench for 9 pts on 3-for-3 from the floor plus 2 rebs and 3 asts.
For Antelope Valley, Joseph Moore scored a team-high 11 pts. Kenneth KJ Moffett had 8 pts and 3 rebs, and Mike Pickney had 8 pts on 3-for-3 from the floor and 3 asts.
On the weekend, Antelope Valley finished 2-2 against a schedule that included three of the state's final four teams from last spring. All four games were decided by 5 points or less.
LA Harbor 72, LA Southwest 58:
Dharion Tanner and Dushone Brown each scored 19 pts as LA Harbor raced past LA Southwest for a 72-58 win in a rare summertime match-up of teams from the same conference & division.
With Grossmont hitting massive traffic jams due to the surprising rainstorms throughout Southern California, LA Southwest switched slots and filled in for the Griffins in the 5 pm time slot against fellow SCC-South affiliate LA Harbor.
That Southwest had to play in back-to-back games hardly helped their cause, and Harbor jumped out to a 21-14 lead midway through the first half. Southwest cut the margin to three at 29-26, but Harbor finished the half with a 10-2 run to lead by 11 at the break and led handily throughout the second half.
Tanner had a double-double with his 19 pts and a game-high 11 rebs. Brown had 19 pts, 6 rebs, 2 steals and a blocked shot. Brandon Tisdale had 7 pts, 5 rebs and a team-high 4 asts. Overall Harbor had a 44-26 rebounding advantage over the much smaller Southwest Cougars.
For Southwest, D.J. Sadler had an outstanding game with 16 pts, including 3 three-pointers, and a game-high 8 asts. Marquis Gentry had 14 pts and 5 rebs. Christian Carson had 12 pts and 5 asts, and Antoine Brown had 10 pts and 5 rebs.
Moorpark 56, Irvine Valley 47:
Justin Eisen scored 13 pts and Joshua Brooks scored 12 as Moorpark pulled away late for a 9-point win over Irvine Valley.
Moorpark jumped out to a quick 10-2 lead, only to see Irvine Valley rally to get within a point at 13-12. Moorpark pushed its lead back to 7 points at 25-18, only to see Irvine Valley finish the first half with an 11-0 run to lead, 29-25, at the break.
But Moorpark battled back, tying the score at 31 and taking a 38-37 lead after a driving lay-up by Eisen. That started a 9-0 run for the Raiders, who pushed their lead to eight points at 45-37 after a lay-up by Jeremiah Gray with 6:33 left following a blocked shot by Reggie Dixon. A 3-point play by Gray pushed Moorpark's lead to 11 at 48-37 with 5:49 to play.
IVC got back-to-back 3-pointers from Tanner Aguera and Jelani Jackson to cut the margin to five points, and trailed 50-45 in the final minute. But 2-point free throws by Brooks, Chris Fields and Sebastian Gahito in the final 44.7 seconds sealed the win for Moorpark.
Eisen had a game-high 13 pts on 5-for-7 from the floor. Brooks had 12 pts, 3 rebs, 3 asts and a steal. Gray had 9 pts, 4 rebs, 2 asts and a steal, and Chris Fields came off the bench for 9 pts and a team-high 4 asts.
For Irvine Valley, Aguera scored a team-high 12 pts, including a pair of threes. Jackson had 10 pts, also including a pair of threes. Jacob Dean had 6 pts and 5 rebs, and Zuri Williams had 5 pts and a game-high 5 asts.
Mira Costa 64, Santa Ana 45:
Cody Hicks scored 17 pts and Buddha Boyd scored 12 as Mira Costa pulled away late to win going away over Santa Ana.
Mira Costa led virtually the entire game, taking an 11-5 lead early on. But Santa Ana tied the score at 11 and again at 22, and the Dons trailed by just 5 points at 27-22 at the half.
But in the second half, Mira Costa pulled away. It started when Frank Bamford and Hicks made back-to-back three-pointers to push the Mira Costa lead to double digits at 48-36. That started a 22-4 run that included two more Hicks 3-pointers as Mira Costa pushed its lead to as many as 24 points in the late stages of the game.
Hicks led all scorers with his 17 pts, which included 5 threes and came on 6-for-9 shooting from the floor. He also had 4 rebs and 2 asts. Boyd had 12 pts, 5 rebs, 2 asts and 2 steals. Brennan Merchant came off the bench for 10 pts on 4-for-6 from the floor and 4 rebs.
For Santa Ana, Sean Steinke came off the bench for a team-high 11 pts and 4 rebs. Roger Hamel had 9 pts on 3 three-pointers plus 3 rebs and 3 steals. Adjin Toskic had 6 pts, a team-high 5 rebs and 2 asts.
Grossmont 53, Cypress 37:
Corwin Feerick scored 15 pts on a perfect 4-for-4 shooting from the floor and 2-for-2 shooting from the line, made 3 three-pointers and added 3 rebs and 2 blocked shots to lead Grossmont to a 16-point win over Cypress.
The weather-related traffic jams delayed Grossmont's arrival - according to coach Doug Weber it took the team 4 hours to arrive from El Cajon - but the Griffins had little trouble against Cypress, leading virtually the entire game.
Grossmont jumped out to a 17-9 lead midway through the first half and led by 11 at 31-20 before Austin Payne made a three for Cypress just before the halftime horn. But Grossmont quickly restored its double-digit lead when Luke Jackson and Marcus Booker each made a 2-point free throw to start the second half, and the Griffins led handily the rest of the way.
Feerick was the only player on either team to score in double digits. Booker had 8 pts and Kaelen Mitchell had 7 for Grossmont. Dominique Walker had 4 pts, a game-high 4 rebs and 3 asts.
For Cypress, Jonathan Mayorga scored a team-high 7 pts, and Jordan Fleck scored 6. Jeremy Wright had 4 pts, a team-high 3 asts and a game-high 3 steals.
5 More Games
