Pitman shakes up top of CCAL standings with win over unbeaten Enochs
The Pitman High boys basketball team entered Friday’s Central California Athletic League road contest against Enochs looking to bounce back.
The Pride dropped a tough game to crosstown rival Turlock on Wednesday, suffering just their second league loss in two years, in a game that could have gone either way down the stretch. There was no time to rest as Friday’s matchup was against the unbeaten first-place Eagles in a matchup between the league’s top two teams.
Wednesday was an uncharacteristically off night for the usually sharp, poised Pride bunch. Shots that typically went in missed the mark, scoring just 47 points, their second-lowest-scoring game this season. Defensively, they allowed over 50 points for just the fourth time in 11 games. The loss snapped a 13-game win streak.
“The big thing for us was getting back to us,” said coach Harvey Marable. “Last game was an emotional game against a rival and we kind of got away from us. They were able to get us out of that. We talked about if we want to have fun, we’re going to have fun by doing the things that we do and celebrating that.”
Friday night, they put the game against Turlock behind them, getting back into the win column with a 57-52 victory, handing the Eagles their first league loss and putting themselves back in the running for a second straight league title.
“We had a long week,” said senior guard Avery Sanchez, who finished with 19 points. “We played in Oakland Monday and then there was the big game against Turlock. But this was a big win for us. It was just us getting back to what we do and that standard we feel we can play at.”
Pitman battled through physicality
Friday night’s game was physical and competitive. Both teams grabbed, pulled and contested every shot, not knowing what could cause a game-shifting momentum surge. Some fouls were called, some weren’t, and two Pitman players were hit with a technical foul each. But Marable said Pitman was used to the physicality after playing in tough nonleague tournaments.
Sanchez scored on layups and free throws but did not hit a three. Though he could not find his range, other players filled the void. Cole Martin consistently scored in the first half and finished with a team-high 23 points. Abhiraj Cheema got to the basket in the half court and converted steals into fastbreak layups as part of an extended 12-0 Pitman run through the end of the first and start of the second quarter to give the Pride a 21-10 lead with 6 minutes, 57 seconds left in the half.
“They have a lot of experience after last year and we put in a lot of time in the preseason, so I didn’t expect anything different,” Sanchez said. “We’ve got a lot of guys that can make it happen on different nights. Sometimes, it’s just about finding whose night it is.”
Pitman took a 27-24 halftime lead and the two sides traded leads throughout the third quarter. With Pitman trailing by two in the third, junior Isaac Dorsey finished the quarter on a personal 6-0 run, making a pair of threes in 34 seconds to give Pitman a 41-37 lead heading into the fourth.
The Pride went ahead by as many as six points in the fourth quarter, but Enochs continued to stay in it. Sanchez and Martin made five of six combined free throws to seal the win.
CCAL runs through Pitman
Friday night’s game confirmed what Enochs head coach Craig Bernardi believed from the start of the season: The CCAL title runs through Pitman.
The Eagles took an early lead and were ahead 10-9 with 2 minutes, 41 seconds left in the first quarter. But the offense went cold.
“Harvey always has his team ready defensively,” Bernardi said. “We knew we were going to have trouble scoring. We tried to (score) in transition offense and we had turnovers early on and I thought we didn’t get timely stops when we needed them.”
Enochs regained the lead with 3:12 and 1:15 left in the third quarter after Joseph Ponteras knocked down a pair of threes, going on a personal 6-2 run. The Eagles’ final lead was at 37-35. Pitman finished the third on a 6-0 run and never gave up the lead again. Mason Galvan finished with a team-high 23 points and Kila Day added 10.
“They do a good job forcing you to the perimeter,” Bernardi said. “They extend your offense so you’re never starting where you’re supposed to start it.”
Both teams finish the first half of league play Wednesday night. Pitman takes on Gregori and Enochs travels to Downey. All three will be 3-1 in league play come Wednesday’s contests.
This story was originally published January 25, 2025 at 8:36 AM.
