MC wins title of own Holiday Classic for first time in 10 years

Modesto Christian boys basketball coach Richard Midgley says he tells anybody who will listen, “When we shoot well, we’re scary.”

Long Beach Poly had a front-row seat to the horror show Wednesday night.

The Crusaders shot 59 percent from the floor (33 of 56) and 40 percent from three-point range (8 for 20) as they breezed to an 88-48 victory over the Jackrabbits in the championship game of the 16th annual Holiday Hoop Classic.

“It was really important for us to win this,” said tournament MVP Robinson Idehen, the Crusaders’ 6-foot-10 center who led all scorers with 21 points. “This is history.”

It’s the first time since 2005 that Modesto Christian (10-1) has won its own tournament.

“I’ve lost it all three times before this year,” said senior point guard Christian Ellis, a four-year varsity player. “This is a big step. Plus, we beat Poly, which is one of the top programs in the state.”

The Jackrabbits were ranked 10th in the state in Cal-Hi Sports’ preseason poll, three spots behind Modesto Christian.

But Poly not only looked like it didn’t belong in the same poll as MC, it looked as if it didn’t belong in the same gym.

The Crusaders’ full-court press thoroughly stunned the Jackrabbits, who fell behind 16-4 midway through the first quarter and trailed 29-7 heading into the second quarter.

Game, set, match.

“Our pressure really hurt them and we shot really well,” said Midgley, who led the Crusaders to a 30-4 record in his first official season as his alma mater’s head coach. “(Tuesday) night against Salesian we relaxed a bit, and that was my fault, but today we attacked, attacked, attacked.”

Ellis (13 points, four assists) spearheaded the attack, pushing the ball up the court at break-neck speed. If the ball wasn’t dumped in to Idehen, it was kicked out to senior Jordan Hollins-Buckner, who stroked six of nine three-point attempts and finished with 20 points.

“Over the years, I’ve not been the best shooter,” Hollins-Buckner said. “I’ve been working on my shot; I shoot with confidence every time.”

A scary proposition for MC’s future opponents.

Freedom 61, Beyer 53 – Georgie Dancer scored a team-high 21 points in the consolation final, but only two came during the third quarter, when the Falcons picked up their defensive pressure.

“We had about a four-minute lull to start the third quarter,” Beyer coach Kyle McKim said. “We played darn well for 28 minutes, and you can get away with that against some teams, but not against a high-level team like (Freedom). A four-minute lull turned a close game into a fight for our lives.”

The Patriots (10-4) came away from the Classic with much more than a 2-2 record.

“This was a great experience,” McKim said. “At the end of the day, we want to get prepared for the playoffs. You can’t replicate this kind of pace and atmosphere anywhere else. This is our third four-day tournament this season. It’s a good mental test. The players learn that they have to be consistent and bring their best every single day.”

In other scores from the final day of tournament action, Salesian defeated Immanuel 70-68 in overtime for third place; Centennial topped Weston Ranch 77-69 in the fifth-place game; Manteca held off El Camino Real 66-63 for seventh; Pleasant Grove took ninth with a 61-52 win over McClymonds; Buchanan beat Saugus 60-54 for 13th place; and Gregori bested Turlock 61-51 in the 15th-place game.

Oakdale Rotary Classic

Talolo Limu-Jones scored 37 points in leading Davis to a 62-52 win over Pitman in the championship game.

Ripon Christian (7-5) defeated Hughson (8-5) 78-53 in the consolation final, while Enochs defeated the host Mustangs for third place. Downey topped Los Banos in the seventh-place game.

Columbia College Holiday Classic

Short-handed Merced High was routed 66-19 by Liberty Ranch (Galt) in the championship game.

Merced suited up five players against the Hawks after the fallout from Tuesday night’s 58-54 win over Sonora, which ended after Bears star A.J. Stewart was involved in an altercation with a Sonora fan. During the fight, Merced’s players left the bench, which results in a one-game suspension, according to Sac-Joaquin Section rules. That left Merced (7-7) with four eligible players Wednesday. Bears coach Hector Nava called up Isaiah Spicer from the freshman team to give Merced five bodies. “Our (junior varsity) team only has six players, so I didn’t want to mess with them.”

With only five players, Merced struggled from the start, as the Hawks sprinted out to a 30-0 lead with 4:40 left in the second quarter.

In the third-place game, Sonora got 23 from Jace Decker and 20 from Nate Patterson in a 70-62 win over Escalon, which was paced by 28 points from Tommy Pangan. El Capitan got 31 points from James Sellers and beat Summerville 60-54 in the consolation final, while James Lick (San Jose) defeated Golden Valley 60-54, despite 19 points from Collin Hayes and 16 from Cyrus Allen, in the seventh-place contest.

Patterson and El Capitan’s Isaiah Knott were named to the all-tourney squad.

Ripon Christian Girls Tournament

Central Catholic defeated Bear Creek 48-34 to take home the first-place trophy. Argonaut beat the host Knights 46-42 in the third-place game and Hilmar took fifth place with a 41-38 win over Big Valley Christian. Central Catholic’s Alexandria Candelario, Daniel Friedrich and Lourdes Herrera were named to the all-tournament team, along with Ripon Christian’s Jessica Orozco and Jessica Van Vliet, Argonaut’s Lauryn Davis and Macie Arevalo, and Hilmar’s Hailey Chavez.

This story was originally published December 31, 2015 at 8:17 AM with the headline "MC wins title of own Holiday Classic for first time in 10 years."