Cold spell at wrong time dooms MJC at tournament

Sooner or later, the basketball gods will smile on the home team at the Modesto Junior College Tournament.

But as it stands, “later” is lapping “sooner.” By miles.

Zack Gonzales’ contested 3-point bid for victory Thursday night back-rimmed, caromed high, perched on the front rim and bounced out as the final buzzer blared. Cuesta of San Luis Obispo scored the last nine points to win 62-61 and, once again, MJC was relegated to the consolation bracket of its own 78-year-old event.

“I practice that shot every day,” Gonzales said as a bag of ice minimized the swelling on a sore (left) shoulder. “I thought it was perfect.”

Young men in their late teens or early 20s, much less anyone else, can’t grasp the full measure of an MJC team that hasn’t won its own tournament since 1945. Calling it a curse doesn’t work, however, when the Pirates go scoreless in the final 4:52.

“If we make a shot, or a free throw, or a defensive rebound....” coach Paul Brogan spelled out. “Then it doesn’t come down to the last shot.”

Cuesta (10-4), moments after Modesto’s Michael Hatfield missed the front end of a 1-and-1, took the lead with 2.8 seconds on Evgeniy Moiseev’s two-handed tip-in of Karem Ozel’s runner.

Modesto, after a timeout, executed an almost flawless inbounds play – Brennan Pope’s half-court pass to Hatfield, who turned and found Gonzales. It was all good, until the shot.

Because it didn’t find the net, Modesto (5-5) meets Mendocino Friday at 4 p.m. for a chance at fifth place Saturday.

“That was a heck of a team we played,” Brogan said. “We have to do a few things a little better.”

Cuesta (10-4), ranked eighth in California, checked every box to advance. Powerful 6-foot-8 post Roberto Mantovani (22 points) accounted for all the Cougars’ points during a nine-minute portion of the second half. Modesto was willing to give up points in the paint, however, to stem Cuesta’s lethal three-point shooting.

Pope and Mason Washington each delivered 16 points and Hatfield 10 for Modesto. But the offense went silent after Ravon Alexander’s two free throws with 4:52 left. A few passive possessions, mixed in with a few good chances missed, doomed the Pirates.

Columbia 69, Cosumnes River 65 – Columbia relied on former high school teammates, Liberty Ranch graduates Michael Meserole and DeAndre Stallings, to eliminate 2014 finalist Cosumnes River.

The 6-7 Stallings, deployed out of position at the post to replace the injured Kashmiere Hughes, responded with 22 points. Meserole, Columbia’s reliable sophomore guard, had 19 and Bosten Van Der Veur 16.

Hughes, from Peoria, Ill., twisted a knee during practice early this week, and Columbia (8-4) promptly lost 12 points and eight rebounds per game. Down went the Claim Jumpers in the first round 65-58 to Mendocino.

“It (Hughes’ loss) definitely changed the dynamic of our team,” coach Rob Hoyt said. “But we’re led by a very competitive guy in Mike Meserole.”

Meserole was instrumental in a 14-3 run midway through the second half that pushed Columbia to a 60-49 lead over Cosumnes River with 8:30 left. Former Beyer High star Jake Polack came off the bench to contribute solid minutes during the rally.

Cosumnes River, coached by Devin Aye (formerly of Lassen), rallied to within 67-65. Leondre Lintz front-rimmed a three-point shot with 15 seconds left, however, and Stallings iced the game with two free throws with 6.5 seconds left.

“I’m shooting 67 percent from the free-throw line. That’s pretty bad. But if I made those two, I knew we had the advantage,” Stallings said. “Kash is a big piece to our puzzle.”

Gerard Andrus led Cosumnes River (5-5) with 24 points.

Fresno 87, Chabot 82 – B.J. Shelton’s finish off a lob by Chris Daniels with 40 seconds left gave Fresno just enough room to squeak into the semifinals. The Rams (9-5) survived the absence of post Josh Sykes, the former Golden Valley High star, who fouled out with 13:32 left.

Chabot (9-3) withstood Fresno’s early storm and inched in front 76-75 on a De’Andre Davis drive and finish with 4:25 left. Shelton’s putback and three-point play 12 seconds later put Fresno ahead to stay.

It was a typically edgy and contentious affair between Chabot and Fresno, the 2013 MJC finalists. This time, the teams and coaches combined for three technical fouls and one flagrant foul.

Shelton paced the Rams with 24 points, but the game’s leading scorer was Chabot’s Wykeem Randle with 30. Teammate Keith Phillips had 22.

Hancock 74, Yuba 69 – Back-to-back jumpers by Malik Rhodes and Matt Willkomm carried Hancock (7-5) from a one-point deficit to a berth in the semifinals. Rhodes completed his 15-point performance with game-clinching free throws in the final seconds. Shane Carney totaled 17 points for the Bulldogs.

Yuba (6-7) inched in front on a tip-in by 6-9 Iowa State signee Manny Malou (23 points) with 1:40 left. Vasilje Saraba had 18 points and Jojo Zamora 17.

Ohlone 75, Mendocino 65 – Ohlone’s 19-4 start to the second half fueled its win. The teams combined for 22 triples, seven during the first half by the Renegades’ Taylor Meeker (23 points) and three in the closing minutes by Christian Yahmouni (19) to ice the victory.

Mendocino (5-6) jumped to a 22-10 lead before Meeker shot the Renegades (4-7) into the game. Paul Steliga anchored the Eagles with 17 points and Jamar King and Noel Crabtree had 13 apiece.

Contra Costa 91, Pima 84 – Contra Costa’s Rae Jackson poured in 30 points in the day’s first game, which tipped off at 8 a.m., to send home Pima of Tucson, Ariz. The Comets (6-5) also featured Larry Wickett with 18 points. Yusuf Shehata paced Pima (5-7) with 28 points.

Sacramento 76, Porterville 70 – Sacramento (7-4), anchored by Brandon Rowden with 25 points, jumped to a 14-point halftime lead and eliminated Porterville (4-10). Travis Flagg led the Pirates with 18 points.

Lassen 81, Bristol JV 71 – A trio of three-pointers by lefty Danny Spinuzza broke a tie with seven minutes left to keep Lassen (4-11) in the tournament. Spinuzza, a freshman guard from Chicago, led the Cougars with 23 points. Bristol battled from an early double-digit deficit and took the lead briefly in the second half.

This story was originally published December 17, 2015 at 7:08 PM with the headline "Cold spell at wrong time dooms MJC at tournament."