Orange Coast, Palomar, Mt. San Antonio and Cypress hope to return state titles to the South region
SACRAMENTO - Orange Coast College, top-seeded with a 29-1 record, and undefeated second seed Palomar (30-0) lead a tough quartet of squads from SoCal that also included third-seeded and eight-time champion Mt. San Antonio (23-7) and fourth-seeded Cypress (22-7). They’ll join Butte, Santa Rosa, College of the Sequoias and defending champion Sierra in Friday’s quarterfinals.The four NorCal teams were previewed on Wednesday. Today, we present brief previews of the four teams from the south.
No. 1 South - ORANGE COAST (29-1, 11-1) - (Orange Empire Conference Champion)
The Pirates ride a nine-game winning streak which came on the heels of their only setback, a 66-61 road loss at Santa Ana in January. But they started the year with a 20-game streak and despite the one loss, were awarded with a No. 1 seed.
Orange Coast, which won its only state title in 2003, will open on Friday at 3 p.m. against Sierra. It’ll bring the state’s most prolific three-point shooting team into the game, averaging 10.5 treys per game led by sophomore Kabrina Cabrera who cans an average of 3.3 per game. She’s averaging 15.5 ppg., one of four players in double figures that help the Pirates present a balanced attack. Guard Meghan McIntyre (19.5), Annie Trinh (13.1) and Gabby Samiy (12.0) round out the group.
McIntyre (9.3 rpg), Savannah Seiler (9.3) and Samiy (5.2) are doing most of the work on the boards while McIntyre is dishing out 7.4 assists per game and averaging 2.2 steals..The Pirates are averaging 74.5 ppg while giving up just 57.4.
Orange Coast is 3-0 against the championship tournament field.
No. 2 South – PALOMAR (30-0, 14-0) – Pacific Coast Conference Champions
Palomar brings the distinction of having the only unbeaten community college basketball record in California and the Comets have rolled up that perfect 30-0 record in dominating fashion. Seven times they’ve scored at least 100 points and have only been held to fewer than 60 points twice. In fact, their 86.8 ppg. average is best in the state while their 44.4 ppg. allowed is first.
When you talk about Palomar, the conversation begins with their do-everything sophomore guard Deajanae Harvey, the SoCal Player of the Year. Harvey has been dominant throughout the season, leading the team in points (24.6), rebounds (8.0), assists (5.8) and steals (6.0). Only once has the standout been held to fewer than 10 points, went for 42 in the season-opener against L.A. Trade Tech, tallied 43 versus Cuyamaca, and sent the Comets to Lemoore with a 30-point effort against Glendale last weekend.
Casmille Sroufe (13.3), who’s averaging better than four treys per game, and Kayla Williams (11.0) have provided scoring support. Opponents are shooting just 31.9%, including 24.2 from three-point, and are out-rebounding the opposition by nearly 13 per game.
Palomar is 2-0 against the state championship tournament field.
No. 3 South – Mt. SAN ANTONIO (23-7, 8-0) – South Coast Conference-North Champions
Look through the annals of the CCCAA Championship history and no other school comes up in the winner’s column more than Mt. San Antonio. The Mounties have won the state championship eight times, all of them since 2004. They captured three in a row from 2006-08, and went back-to-back in 2012-13 and against in 2016-17.
This year, Mt. SAC comes in as the third seed and having strung together 11 consecutive wins including regional victories over Pasadena City (83-52) and Riverside City (66-54). The Mounties have fueled that success with good shooting, ranking ninth in the state (43.1%) in field goal percentage and 20th in scoring (68.5 ppg.). Sophomore guard Kamesha Moore (14.5) and guard Briana Lizardi (10.7) lead the team in scoring with guard Jamya Mickens (9.4) just shy of double-figures.
Mt. SAC is outrebounding opponents by more than 11 per game (45.3-34.0) and allowing just 53.5 ppg. The Mounties are 0-4 against the tournament opponents this weekend.
No. 4 Seed – CYPRESS (23-7, 9-3) – Orange Empire Conference (2nd Place)
If history is any indication, then perhaps the No. 4 seed that Cypress has this weekend is a good omen. In 2005, the Chargers brought that same fourth seed into the state championship tournament at the University of San Diego and came out with a 69-65 win over top-seeded Pasadena City to claim the program’s lone banner.
This year, they’ll look for history to repeat itself and will be led in the effort by first-team All-State player Ashley Hawkins who has enjoyed a great sophomore campaign. Hawkins ranks sixth in the state in scoring (23.1) and has scored at least 30 points in three of her last five games, including a 30-point effort in the Chargers’ 79-67 win over Ventura in the second round of the SoCal Regionals. Hawkins also leads the efforts on the boards with a team-high 7.3 rpg.
Sophomore Jaylene Oviedo helps carry some of the scoring load wither 11.3 ppg. average while guard Alexcia Alvarez (9.7) and freshman guard Jasmine Uy (9.5) are close to double-figures. Defensively, Cypress is particularly tough around the perimeter, allowing opponents to make just 23.7% of their attempts, eighth-best in California.
Cypress is 1-3 against the teams advancing to Lemoore.
(Mike Robles, CCCAA)