CC M&W Basketball: Nov./Dec. ’23
- Updated: December 30, 2023
2023-24 COMMUNITY COLLEGE BASKETBALL / MEN & WOMEN
Cuyamaca Men
Sat., Dec. 30: LACC 89, Grossmont 68
Cuyamaca Tournament
Thurs., Dec. 28: Cuyamaca 67, San Diego Mesa 64; East L.A. 91, Antelope Valley 73.
Fri., Dec. 29: San Diego Mesa 97, Antelope Valley 84; East L.A. 82, Cuyamaca 68.
Sat., Dec. 30: Antelope Valley 88, Cuyamaca 77; East L.A. 92, San Diego Mesa 52
RANCHO SAN DIEGO (Dec. 28, 2023) – Even though they are conference opponents, the Cuyamaca Coyotes hosted San Diego Mesa in the opening round of the Cuyamaca Classic, nipping the Olympians, 67-64.
The week had traditionally been the week of the Mesa Tournament for more than 50 years, but they allowed Cuyamaca to taker over these dates on the calendar about 8 years ago.
No game information was offered from the Coyotes… and they win!
Cuyamaca (6-6 overall) continues tournament play on Friday against East Los Angeles (4 p.m.) and Saturday against Antelope Valley (1 p.m.).
Grossmont Women
By Nick Pellegrino
ECS Senior writer
The Hawks (12-1 overall) completed a 3-0 run in their trip to the Southland by whipping Los Angeles Trade-Tech, 84-34, in Tuesday’s (Dec. 19) action.
The Griffins finished in a three-way deadlock with a 2-1 tournament record, with second place going to Cuesta with a head-to-head win over Grossmont.
The Griffins officially placed third overall, bettering Pacific Coast Athletic Conference rivalMiraCOsta, which defeated Grossmont three weeks ago, ye the rising G-House continues to display vast improvement now that a full roster is now in tact.
Although MiraCosta also downed LASW, the Spartans only went 1-2 in the event to finish in the bottom half of the standings.
Game Action
Grossmont trailed throughout after falling 10 points back at 21-11 through the first quarter. However, with six minutes to go, the Griffins gained their initial lead,out-scoring the Cougars 18-10 in the fourth to win it.
Griffins guard Pohai Basso tallied 8 of her game-best 21 points inthe final period, while reserve forward Allira Martin (Mesa, Ariz.) added 6 of her career high-equaling 8 points down the stretch.
Grossmont took its first lead on a steal and breakaway layin in Naya Lindgrun for a 45-43 lead with 8:35 remaining. LASW was ableto even several times, yet never re-gained the advantage,
Finally, with 1:42 to go, a Martin layin gave the Griffins tlead at 53-51. The Cougars again tied the score with 568 seconds lefct, but the game-winning score came from Pohni Basso on a 3-point goal with 40 seconds remaining. The assist went to guard Mikayla “Mia” Maglalang.
LASW took its own shot from the arc in the closing momnets, but the miss and a rebound by 5-foot-4 guard Sterling Edwards (Canyon Hills) wrapped up the victory.
Grossmont will take the next three weeks off, next meeting MiraCosta in the teams’ PCAC opener in eastern Oceanside on Wed., Jan. 10, starting at 5 p.m. at Crosswoods
Gymnasium.
35th annual Grossmont College Tournament Scoreboard
Sun.,Dec. 17
Grossmont 72, L.A. Trade-Tech 52
MiraCosta 66, L.A. Southwest 65
Cosumnes River 66, Cuesta 52Mon.,Dec. 18
Cosumnes River 99, MiraCosta 55 (CRC clicnhes title)
L.A. Southwest 64, L.A. Trade-Tech 57
Cuesta 68, Grossmont 55Tue., Dec. 19
Cosumnes River 84, L.A. Trade-Tech 34
Cuesta 75, MiraCosta 60
Grossmont v56, L.A. Southwest 53
Mon., Dec. 18
Cuesta 68, Grossmont 55
Mia Maglalang
FLETCHER HILLS – Cuesta College of San Luis Obispo became just the eight school in Suthern California to reach double-figures in victories after downing Grossmont College, 68-55, in Monday’s (Dec. 18) s econd round of the 35th annual Grossmont College Invitational.
The Cougars (10-4) turned around the tight contest by tallying 30 points in the second quarter to mount a 46-31 halftime advantage. BOXSCOREMikayla “
Mikayla “Mia” Maglalang, a freshman guard out of Otay Ranch, paced the Griffins with team-highs of 12 points and five assists.
The Griffins will conclude the tournament on Tuesday with a 5 p.m. start against L.A. Southwest College, which rallied from a double-digit deficit to dump district rival A. Reade-Techg, 64-57.
Sun., Dec. 17
Grossmont 72, L.A. Trade-Tech 52
Pohni Basso
FLETCHER HILLS – Grossmont College guard Pohni Basso collected a team-best 13 points, part of a season-high 38 points by the Griffins bench, rolling to a 72-52 vicvtory over L.A. Trade-Tech College n Sunday’s (Dec. 17) opening round of the 35th annual Grossmont College Tournament. BOXSCORE
Basso, a freshman out of University City, nailed 4-of-6 shots from beyond the arc, scoring her points injust 21 minutes of play as head coach Karen Caires was able to clear then bench early in the second half to defeat the visiting Lady Techsters.
Among the Grossmont starters, forward Brielle Gefrom collected 11 points, as all members of the starting unit scored at least five points.
For LATT, guard Diara McBroom paced all scorers with 31 points to remain among the state leaders.
Grossmont will host Cuesta College of San Luis Obispo on Monday, then L.A. Southwest College on Tuesday.Both games start at 5 p.m.
Trade-Tech was the 1985 Southern California champions,m then captured the state crown the following season.
De Salvo promised to take them off the streets (similar to what Santa Monica coach Bob Corbin did in 1981 & ’82, when the Corsairs posted a composite 65-1 on-court record; 61-5 with forfeits in the first season) ) and away from life on the street.
However, if you became re-involved with them, you were no longer on the team (he did lose 3-4 players). Utilizing this personal initiative, the Lady Techsters captured the 1985 Southern California championship held at Long Beach City College.
A year later, when the Southland switched from a spring season sport to the winter (like the rest of the nation), LAT-T capture the CCCAA state championship.
Despite Corbin and De Salvo each owning a pair of California state or So.Cal. regional championships, neither are indicted in the CCCAA Hall of Fame. However, with the 50th anniversary season of state-sanctioned women’s athletics coming up, the 2025-76 season would be the perfect opportunity for their inclusion.
— Compiled by Nick Pellegrino
Cuyamaca Men
Wed, Drc. 13
Cuyamaca 81, Palomar 71
The Coyotes (5-6 overall, 1-0 PCAC)did not supple game information or statistics. The Comets fellto 5-7 (0-1 PCAC).
Wednesday also marked the 98th birthday of actor-comedian-dancer Dick Van Dyke.
Fri., Dec. 1
Santa Ana 97, Cuyamaca 52
RANCHO SAN DIEGO – Less than a week after falling to Grossmont College, visitging Santa Ana College returned to town, this time coming out with a victory in a one-sided stomp of Cuyamaca College, 97-52, on Friday (Dec. 1).
The boxscore was not published at press time.
Fri., Nov. 17
Cuyamaca 75, Rio Hondo 73
WHITTIER — Xavier Rubio registered a game-best 29 points, and the Cuyamaca Coyotes needed one of them. The guard sank a tie-breaking jump shot with 11 seconds remaining Friday (Nov. 27), the margin to trim the host Rio Hondo Roadrunners, 75-73, in non-conference action.
The Roadrunners followed with three chances to tie, grabbing a pair of offensive rebounds following the first two misses, but when the buzzer sounded dureing the third missed field goal attempt, the Coyotes had the victory.
In addition to Rubio’s scoring, Cuyamaca received 23 points and 8 rebounds from forward Patrick Brinkman.
Rio Hondo (1-3) held an 8-point, first-half lead, but Cuyamaca was able to halve the margin by the half, 33-29.
Why didn’t the Roadrunners try a 3-point shot to win the battle prior to the final buzzer? According to the boxscore, they only made4-of-22 shots from beyond the arc.
Wed., Nov. 15
Cuyamaca 89, Golden West 72
RANCHO SAN DIEGO – The Cuyamaca College men’s basketball team is off to its best start in 15 season with a record of 3-2 after racing past visiting Golden West College of Huntington Beach, 89-72, Wednesday (Nov. 15).
Despite the victory, the Coyotes did not report any game information (besides the score) to the CCCAA state website; details are unavailable. and Oxnard.
Te return game will be Friday, Dec. 2, at Cthe Coyotes’
Grossmont Men
Wed., Dec 13
San Diego City 99, Grossmont 67
At the midway point of the first half, the Knights (10-3 overall,1-0 PCAC) mounted a 31-4 cushion.
Sat., Dec. 2
Yuba College 92, Grossmont 62 BOXSCORE
FLETCHER HILLS – In the semifinals of the 51st annual Grossmont College Invitational, no one can accuse Grossmont of staking the bracket, falling to the state-ranked 49ers of Yuba College (60 miles north of Sacramento).
Fri., Dec. 1
Grossmont 64, Copper Mountain 61 BOXSCORE
FLETCHER HILLS — Grossmont College guard Amari Leflore tallied 13 of his career-high 22 points in the second half, powering the Griffins past the Fightin’ Cacti of Copper Mountain College, 64-61, in Friday’s (Dec. 1) opening round of the 51st annual Grossmont College Invitational.
Each of Leflore’s baskets came from 3-point range on just 12 attempts,, allowing the Griffins (2-4 overall) to rally back from a 29-26 halftime deficit. The G-House has now won two straight contests.
Next best for Grossmont was guard Diego Sanchez with 11 points and 7 assists.
For Copper Moiuntain, Luke George also registered a game-best 22 points.
Grossmont will host Yuba College in Saturday’s semifinals. The 49ers, located an hour’s drive north of Sacramento, downed Moorpark, 57-52.
In other first-round contests, L.A. Trafe-Tech downed Palomar, 94-80, while San Diego City stopped Saddleback, 74-58.
Tue., Nov. 21
L.A. Harbor 100, Grossmont 91 (OT)
FLETCHER HILLS – Grossmont College guard Diego Sanchez nailed a 3-point goal with six seconds remaining to force overtime, but visiting L.A. Harbor College dominated the extra session, lifting the Seahawks to a 100-91 decision over the Griffins in a rare Tuesday (Nov. 21) afternoon matinee. BOXSCORE
With his trey, Sanchez, a sophomore out of Otay Ranch HS, finished with a career-high 12 points after earning his starting debut of the season. Then Grossmont survived a last-second Seahawks shot to win, which missed, unlike last weekend when Victor Valley hit a buzzer-bearer to top the Griffins.
However, the overtime saw Harbor open on a 10-2 run to pull away after blowinga 17-point halftime cushion.
Sanchez scored all of his dozen points in the second half, while Brandon Tully tallied 14 of his team-best 24 points after the intermission for Grossmont (0-4 overall)
For the Seahawks (2-4), Blake Ballard registered a game-high 32 points, going a perfect 16-of-16 at the foul line.
Grossmont returns to action next Tuesday (Nov. 28), hosting Santa Ana at 5 p.m.
Cuyamaca Women
Sat., Dec. 2
Palo Verde at Cuyamaca, ccd.
In a program that has been cancelled several times in its two decades of existence, Cuyamaca director of athletics Tomie Campbell sent East County Sports a text message stating that the season has been cancelled.
It’s the second cancellation in the three-year term of head coach Marc Carter, the formermen’s basketball standout at Southwestern College, who later played for SanDigo State.
Although no official explanation was listed, Carter has found recruiting for the program to be extremely difficult for a school which shares recruits with local rival Grossmont in anarea with fewer high schools thanany othr community college in San Diego County (sans MiraCosta).
UPDATE: The Southwestern College women’s basketball tram also suspended its season due to a lack of players.
Fri., Nov. 17
Cuyamaca at Palo Verde, cccd.
BLYTHE – After ending several horrible all-time losing streaks last season, the improving Cuyamaca College women’s basketball team opens the season with a home-and-home series on the road against the second-year program at Palo Verde College, located along the Colorado River.
The Pirates are 2-4 overall, featuring victories over Santa Monica
Grossmont Women
Fri., Dec. 88
Saddleback 64, Grossmont 57
MISSION VIEJO – Grossmont College saw its losing streak hit five following a 64-57 setback to the Saddleback Bobcats on Friday (Dec. 8). BOXSCORE
Janea Wilson led the Griffins with 18 points,while both Anaya Lundgren and Pohai Basso came off thebench to add 11 points. For Lundgren, a guard from Steele Canyon, the total was a career high.
CYPRESS – The East Los Angeles Huskies whipped the Grossmont College Griffins, 83-44, in the opening round ot the 45th annual Cypress College Tournament, the oldest event in women’s athletics in all California Community College Athletic Association sports.
East L.A. (5-4) raced to a 48-33, halftime lead. BOXSCORE
For the Griffins (21-5), 4 – freshman center Madie Peet (El Capitan) was the team leader in scoring (9 points) and reboundign (7 boards).
Wed., Nov. 15
Cerritos 60, Grossmont 39
FLETCHER HILLS – Nearly 50 years ago, starting with the 1976-77 season, state-sanctioned women’s community college athletics began in California,with Grossmont College rating among the top programs. Included was a league championship in the 1978 season in the original South Coast Conference, widely considered the most powerful and deepest circuits in California.
Fortunately, none of Grossmont’s coaches are old enough to remember wearing bellbottoms
In honor of those standout Griffins teams, the ballclub is facing many of those South Coast opponents — only without the vintage bellbottoms and big hair. However, the nostalgic results are now different.
On Wednesday (Bov. 15), Grossmont fell to visiting Cerritos, 60-39. A big third-quarter rally allowed the Griffins to trim a halftime deficitin to single-figures, but the Falcons pulled away late.
For Grossmont (0-4), the bench fueled the comeback, paced by team-highs of 12 points and 7 rebounds by Janea Wilson.
Unfortunately, Grossmont went 0-3 against the SCC teams of the 70s & 80s — Fullerton, Santa Ana and Cerritos. The next meet a club which was so good, they were kicked out of its own league and were placed in the SCC — College of the Desert. The contest is this Monday (Nov. 20< starting at 6 p.m.gymnasium.
