Davis, Brown power Modesto Christian to second straight Holiday Hoop Classic title
The Modesto Christian basketball team has seen it all in the season’s first three weeks.
The Crusaders dealt with the flu that kept them from practicing, injuries, transfers and games against the best high school teams around.
The team (8-4) went into the 22nd annual Holiday Hoop Classic ready to prove the adversity it faced wouldn’t hold it back.
After narrowly escaping Downey and blowing out Ripon Christian in the tournament’s first two rounds, MC beat Campolindo in a rematch of the Northern California Open Division Championship, setting up another Open Division playoff rematch, this time with last year’s semifinals opponent, Clovis West (17-1).
Modesto Christian proved it was up for the task against, routing the previously unbeaten Golden Eagles 79-55 to win the tournament for the second straight year.
“They’ve been through the wringer in the last couple of weeks,” Crusaders coach Brice Fantazia said of his team. “I think it brought them closer together. We’ve won championships here as a staff … and this is one of my proudest moments because they could have easily folded … and it just brought them closer together. No excuses were made, so I’m proud of them.”
San Diego State-bound Bj Davis set the tone in the first quarter for Modesto Christian on offense and defense. After the Crusaders fell into an early 5-0 hole, they powered back to take a 13-12 lead. Davis’ eight points in the opening frame led to a 19-14 advantage after the first eight minutes.
He finished the first half with 16 points as the Crusaders held a 38-28 lead at halftime.
“He’s the best guard in Northern California,” Fantazia said. “That’s why he’s going to San Diego State. When you talk about defense, energy, rebounding from the guard position, his ability to go by guys, everything as a package, he does what nobody else in Northern California can do. Clovis West has elite on-ball defenders and he made it look easy tonight.”
Jalen Brown provided a spark coming out of the intermission, scoring nine straight points to help the Crusaders extend their lead to 47-28. He finished the game with 17 points.
The 6-foot-2 guard is finding his way with a new team after transferring from Everett Alvarez High School in Salinas. He starts alongside Davis in the backcourt and averaged 16 points in the tournament. Davis and Brown were named co-MVPs of the tournament.
“It’s been pretty easy,” Brown said of the transition. “The coaches make it easy for me, they give me the ball, letting me do what I can, and I share it with my teammates.”
The duo also led the team defensively, pestering the Clovis West guards, forcing turnovers and immediately turning them into transition points. Modesto Christian held the Eagles’ leading scorer, Isaac Martinez, to 11 points.
When a Clovis West guard found himself in the paint, he was greeted and on a few occasions promptly turned away by 6-foot-10 center Prince Oseya. Oseya finished with 12 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks and made the All-Tournament team along with freshman guard Rashod Cotton (13 points, two steals)
“He’s been awesome lately,” Davis said of the big man. “I don’t know what’s got into him or what type of food or water he’s drinking, but he’s been awesome. It’s huge for our team. To be able to trust that we got a 6-10 rim protector on the back end makes us want to play better on-ball defense. We can be confident that if we accidentally get blown by, he’s gonna clean it up.”
The Crusaders came out of the tournament, which featured some of the best competition in Northern California, unscathed. They went a perfect 4-0 and got better as the tournament went on. With Tri-City Athletic League play starting Monday, they are starting to figure it out at the right time.
“Every game, we really get more in tune with each other,” Davis said. “I feel like it’s just a matter of time until it’s automatic. Our defense has really stepped up. Everybody’s really bought in on being a lock-down team, and it’s only gonna get better.”
This story was originally published December 31, 2022 at 8:05 AM.
