State basketball preview: 5 things to look for from Modesto Christian in Open Division Final
The CIF State Basketball Championships return to Sacramento’s Golden 1 Center for the first time since 2019, and Modesto Christian will represent the Stanislaus District in the Open Division Final.
The Crusaders (30-5) have faced top teams from California, Nevada and Missouri this season, but their toughest test awaits them Saturday. They will suit up against Southern California Regional champion, Corona Centennial.
The Huskies (32-1) are the top team in the Open Division bracket, as well as California, and rank second in the country, according to MaxPreps. They have won 29 games straight and are averaging 77 points a game.
Centennial won the 2022 CIF Southern Section Open Division Championship by blowing out third-seed Harvard-Westlake 68-48.
The state championships start Friday, March 11, at 10 a.m. and end Saturday, March 12, with the Open Division girls and boys games at 6 and 8 p.m., respectively.
Spectrum Networks (Spectrum News 1 or Spectrum SportsNet) will broadcast all of the weekend’s games live. In Northern California, NFHS Network also will carry all games (membership is required).
Here are five things to look for from the Crusaders as they look to win their first Open Division title in program history.
Unsung heroes
When the Crusaders needed a shot in the arm in the first quarter against Archbishop Mitty, Alex Argandar stepped up big, scoring six points on two threes in the opening frame.
In the second half, when the Monarchs started to press full-court in an attempt to speed up the Crusaders and force turnovers, the 6-foot-1 point guard’s presence and ball-handling ability kept the offense moving as it should.
“In the first half, he hit big shots for us and held his guy to three points. He’s kind of the unsung hero for us,” Fantazia said. “Jamari (Phillips) and Bj (Davis) get all the credit, but he’s just solid, he makes shots, plays defense and makes great decisions. He doesn’t get a lot of the credit, but without him we wouldn’t be here.”
Argandar, a senior, is playing in the last game of his high school career along with Austin Moore and Zion Jones. It’s a small class, but one that has accomplished a lot in its four years in the program.
“It’s pretty cool for our seniors to be able to say that they’re the only seniors to win the NorCal Open at Modesto Christian after all these years.” Fantazia said after Tuesday’s win.
Freshman Zeke Davis has come on in the playoffs. After spending a lot of his time playing junior varsity, he cracked the varsity rotation and had some really good shooting games off the bench and held his own defensively.
Sophomore Drevon Johnson stands 6-foot-7 and brings energy when he gets into the game. With big men Prince Oseya and Manasse Itete both in the starting lineup, Johnson’s height and length on the inside ensures there isn’t much of a drop-off in the Crusaders’ inside presence if one of their starters is subbed out.
Fast starts
The Crusaders have led at halftime in six of their seven playoff wins. For a team that is still pretty young, playing with a lead seems to be where they are most comfortable. Blowouts are great, but this is the biggest stage in California high school basketball and they’re rare.
It’s tough for some teams to play with a lead. Some get complacent and others will tighten up if their opponent goes on a run. In their most recent wins against Clovis West and Campolindo, Modesto Christian played beyond its years, maintained composure and came away with four- and three-point wins, respectively.
Continue development
Fantazia speaks glowingly about how much his team has grown up throughout the course of the season. Leading scorer and top 15 sophomore in the country Jamari Phillips also has spoken about how much the team has grown together throughout the course of the season. That will need to come together more than ever when facing a Centennial roster loaded with talent throughout its rotation.
Perimeter defense
Bj Davis is a pesky on-ball defender with quick feet and quick hands to match. The junior has seen some of the best the nation has had to offer this season. He’s matched up with the best player from Durango, which competed in the postseason in Nevada, shut down Clovis West’s best player on Saturday, March 5, and most recently matched up with Saint Mary’s College-bound guard Aidan Mahaney of Campolindo.
This Saturday, Davis will face quite possibly the best he’s seen all year in five-star junior Jared McCain.
The 6-foot-3 guard is Centennial’s leading scorer and has 17 college offers, including Duke, Gonzaga and UCLA, according to 247Sports.
The game serves as a homecoming for McCain, who spent many years growing up in Sacramento.
Protect the rim
Prince Oseya is the Crusaders’ defensive backbone. Fantazia noted that his bigs “put it together” in a win over Weston Ranch in the Sac-Joaquin Section quarterfinals and haven’t looked back.
Through the season, Oseya has put up some monster defensive numbers, including games of five, seven and six blocks during the regular and postseasons.
Manasse Itete, a 6-foot-6 sophomore, is one of the more versatile defenders the Crusaders have. He can switch out to a guard in the half-court and not only stay in front of the small and often quicker offensive player, but he has also successfully contested shots late in the shot clock.
A defensive possession isn’t over until the rebound is secured and the two starting bigs combine for more than 13 rebounds a game.
2022 CIF State Championships Schedule
Friday, March 11
10:00 a.m. Division V Girls – Shalhevet (23-6) vs. San Domenico (23-11)
12:00 p.m. Division V Boys – Chaffey (24-21) vs. Stuart Hall (21-12)
2:00 p.m. Division III Girls – La Salle (31-2) vs. Oakland Tech (20-11)
4:00 p.m. Division III Boys – Venice (21-9) vs. Pleasant Valley (31-3)
6:00 p.m. Division I Girls – Windward (23-10) vs. Salesian College Prep (20-5)
8:00 p.m. Division I Boys – Damien (31-4) vs. Clovis North (22-11)
Saturday, March 12
10:00 a.m. Division IV Girls – Imperial (28-6) vs. Branson (23-8)
12:00 p.m. Division IV Boys – Scripps Ranch (25-11) vs. Justin-Siena (21-11)
2:00 p.m. Division II Girls – Sage Hill (26-10) vs. San Joaquin Memorial (27-6)
4:00 p.m. Division II Boys – Foothill, Sana Ana (31-3) vs. Elk Grove (27-6)
6:00 p.m. Open Division Girls – Sierra Canyon (29-3) vs. Archbishop Mitty (30-1)
8:00 p.m. Open Division Boys – Centennial, Corona (32-1) vs. Modesto Christian (30-5)
This story was originally published March 10, 2022 at 12:42 PM.
