For the first time ever, the NorCal Open Division champion will be crowned in the 209
The Modesto Christian basketball team is coming off a nail biter after Saturday’s one-point win over De La Salle in the CIF NorCal Open Division semifinals.
Bj Davis drove from the top of the key through four Spartans, making the game-winning layup with under two minutes left, and the Crusaders scrapped for two defensive stops in the final minute to seal the victory.
Tuesday, they have to turn around and do it all again.
Modesto Christian (27-6), which has not lost to a Northern California opponent this season, welcomes No. 3 St. Joseph-Santa Maria (27-6) to the area at 7 p.m. for the Open Division regional final. The game was moved from the school’s campus to Modesto Junior College, which seats around 1,800 people in the stands, to accommodate a larger crowd. Gates open at 5:30 p.m.
The Open Division features the best teams California has to offer. The Crusaders qualified for the Open after winning their record 21st Sac-Joaquin Section championship Feb. 25.
“The teams are very talented,” Crusaders coach Brice Fantazia said of playing in the Open Division. “They all have Division 1-type kids and kids that will have opportunities to possibly play professionally. Coaches run their programs like college programs.”
Modesto Christian is in the Open for the eighth time in its 10-year existence, a Northern California record, and is playing in its second straight regional final. Last year, it beat Bay Area powerhouse Campolindo of Moraga to win its first NorCal Open title.
That game was on the road. This year, the No. 1 Crusaders will host the first Open Division boys basketball game in the area’s history. The first four NorCal Open championships were at Sleep Train Arena in Sacramento. In 2017 and 2018, Santa Clara University hosted the final. In 2019, the game was at Cosumnes River College and last season’s game took place at Campolindo. There were no 2020 and 2021 games because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“A lot of people were contacting me saying this the biggest game in the history of the 209,” Fantazia said. “We’ve never had a NorCal Open Championship here.”
The Crusaders matched up with St. Joseph earlier this season. The game went down to the wire at the MLK Classic at De La Salle as guard Jeremiah Bernard sealed a 68-67 win with a last-second block.
The Knights finished first in the Mountain League and feature one of the best sophomores in the country in 6-foot-6, 200-pound Tounde Yessoufou, who scored 29 points in the Jan. 16 matchup with Modesto Christian. He averages 28.2 points a game, seventh in California.
Davis caught fire in the mid-January matchup, scoring a game-high 38 points on 54% shooting with seven 3’s.
“It was a heavyweight fight.” Fantazia said.
On Saturday night, the Crusaders fell behind early against De La Salle, but used a 10-0 run in the third quarter to take their first lead. The two teams traded leads in the fourth before Modesto Christian sealed the win. Tuesday’s matchup could prove to be like Saturday night’s affair against the Spartans.
“I really hope the community comes out and supports the players,” Fantazia said. “I think it’s big for 209 basketball.”
This story was originally published March 6, 2023 at 12:10 PM.
