Modesto Christian basketball drops home opener to hungry, veteran Berkeley High
Modesto Christian basketball coach Brice Fantazia believes at its best, the team can be among the top in Northern California.
They will have depth at guard, tall athletic bigs and a post presence to round out a well-balanced attack.
But the Crusaders will not be at their best until the end of the month.
They have four players serving the Sac-Joaquin Section mandated sit-out period, meaning they will not be eligible until Dec. 30, missing the team’s first seven games.
One of those was Saturday’s home game against Berkeley High, a hungry, senior-heavy team in the top 20 of MaxPreps’ most recent North Coast Section rankings.
An unsatisfactory shooting night for the Crusaders and a fast start for the Yellowjackets made for a tough home opener for the defending back-to-back Division I section champions and last season’s Open Division NorCal finalists. Modesto Christian kept it close through the game but was unable to advance to 3-0 early in the season, falling to Berkeley, 56-51.
“We just didn’t play well,” Fantazia said. “I thought we played pretty good defense, to hold a good team to 56 points, it’s just offensively, we’re out of rhythm.”
The win for Berkeley was every bit the upset.
The Crusaders are expected to be one of the top teams in Northern California and make a run in the NorCal playoffs. Last season, they lost only one game to a Northern California opponent, falling to St. Joseph in the NorCal Open Division title game.
Just two rotation players return from last season’s Crusaders team, a stark contrast to Berkeley’s roster, which includes 15 upperclassmen and returns its leading scorers from last year’s West Alameda County-Foothill Basketball League championship team.
As the final buzzer sounded, Yellowjackets fans cheered and players rushed the court in celebration. The team had just won arguably its biggest game of the young season.
“We knew they were a good team,” Fantazia said. “They won their league last year and they had everybody back. They’re one of the better teams in the Bay Area.
“They’re a team loaded with seniors that knew this was a big game, and on the flip side, we’re a team loaded with underclassmen that I don’t think understand what a big game is. We came out a step slow on everything. Normally, you can tell when Modesto Christian knows it’s a big game. You couldn’t tell that tonight, so that’s the disappointing fact. And that’s on us coaches. We’ve got to do a better job of making sure guys are ready. Our immaturity showed a little bit.”
The Yellowjackets shot lights out to start the game, scoring 15 first-quarter points on five made threes. They added two more in the second quarter, finishing the first half with 21 of their 25 points from long range.
Despite the onslaught of three-point field goals, the Crusaders kept the game close. Three Ross Widemon free throws tied the game at 15 early in the second quarter and Modesto Christian converted a Rashod Cotton steal into a Jeremiah Bernard wing three to give it an 18-17 lead with 5 minutes, 30 seconds left in the half.
Even with all of the veteran leadership, it was sophomore Donte Joseph’s four first-half three-pointers that helped the Yellowjackets take a 25-21 halftime lead.
Berkeley opened the second half on a run and quickly extended its lead to 10 points, but the Crusaders clawed back. A Bernard layup cut the deficit to two points late in the third quarter and they took a one 40-39 lead with just under six minutes left in the fourth quarter.
Berkeley’s offense came alive once again as it outscored Modesto Christian 17-11 in the final minutes of the game.
“We never quit fighting,” Fantazia said. “We just got frustrated today and I think it affected us offensively. But defensively, we dug our feet in the ground. We played great defense. They had some guys hit contested shots, but that’s basketball. The ball’s got to go through the rim and we had very good shooters not shoot well tonight, and they had guys shoot well. We’ve won games like that, too, so it’s just the luck of the draw.”
The Crusaders won’t be at full strength until the final day of their annual Holiday Hoop Classic in late December.
Reinforcements are coming in the likes of sophomore guard Myles Jones, junior guard Gavin Sykes, junior forward Ry Atkins and senior forward Marcus Washington, who all joined the team via transfer.
Jones and Sykes are a pair of dynamic scoring guards who Fantazia said are great players and even better teammates. Sykes holds multiple Division I offers from schools including the University of San Francisco, UCSB and Sacramento State. Jones also holds offers from USF and Sacramento State and has also been offered by Western Illinois University.
“They give us a little bit of maturity, even though they’re only a sophomore and a junior,” Fantazia said. “Other guys kind of feed off of their confidence.”
Washington and Atkins provide versatility, skill and depth at the forward spots.
Until they are at full strength, Bernard, Cotton, Widemon and senior Judah Flores will have to carry the bulk of the load.
Bernard and Cotton finished Saturday’s contest with 11 points apiece, and Widemon led the team with 13 points.
The Crusaders host Enochs on Wednesday, then host Turlock in their first game of the Holiday Hoop Classic a week later, Dec. 27.
