Central focus: Raiders look to avenge loss to Manteca in VOL finale

Mike Wilson prefers to keep his nose to the grindstone, but the Central Catholic High School boys basketball coach doesn’t have to look up to know there are giants lying in wait.

The Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV tournament begin Feb. 19, and the Raiders – three-time section finalists looking for their first banner since 1988 – will be cast as a title contender. But they won’t be alone.

The D-IV field is teeming with A-listers: undefeated Liberty Ranch (27-0), a team blessed with shooters and a suffocating press; Trans-Valley League co-leader Ripon (22-4), with dynamic scoring guards Aaron Paschini and Cole Stevens; and Golden Empire League dance partners West Campus (22-4) and Mesa Verde (20-6), who trail only Capital Christian in the GEL.

Capital Christian has won four consecutive section titles, beginning with three D-V banners (2012-14) and last year’s D-IV crown. The Cougars won’t get the opportunity to defend that title, though. They’ll be moved to D-III, per the section’s “Continued Success” rule.

Wilson could tell you more about the field, but then he’d be breaking his own rule. The Raiders still have one regular-season game left, and it’s a biggie: Central Catholic (21-4) will host Manteca (21-5) on Wednesday in a Valley Oak League finale.

“The one thing I stress is that we don’t look past anybody; it’s one game at a time around here,” Wilson said. “We try to keep the talk minimal. With social media, though, there’s all kinds of stuff out there. I don’t read it, but the kids do.”

The Raiders and Buffaloes are tied for second in the VOL at 10-3 with no chance of catching unbeaten champion Weston Ranch (22-4, 13-0).

Still, there’s plenty at stake. Both teams are looking to impress the section seeding committee with a marquee win over a potential section champion.

“We’re looking at this like a playoff game. Manteca is so damn strong that it’s easy to treat it as one because of the competition level,” Wilson said. “Plus, there’s a little bit of rivalry, and the performance we gave the last time, in our opinion, was below par for us. We feel like we have something to prove.”

Manteca won the first meeting Jan. 22 at home, 68-55. Four players finished in double figures for the Buffaloes, who scored eight of the first nine points and led 21-11 after one quarter.

Dwight Young scored 12 of his game-high 19 points in the second half, while Kenny Wooten and Anand Hundal had 18 apiece. Tydus Verhoeven rounded out the attack with 11.

Central Catholic shot just 9 of 31 from three-point range and missed its final seven attempts from that range.

“Our biggest thing: We want to show that we’re a better team than what we showed that last game. Really, that’s the biggest thing for us,” Wilson said. “(A win) could be momentum going into the playoffs. It could be confidence-building, and if we get a win out of that team, it’s a big statement to the CIF. It says we’ll compete, and you better bring your best game to beat us.”

Manteca will be subjected to the same terms. Central Catholic has won six consecutive games and took Weston Ranch to the mat in a 69-66 loss.

Wilson believes the late-season surge suggests the Raiders are finally gelling. A long football season affected the basketball team’s chemistry and rotation through two months.

Starters Jared Rice and Daron Bland were key cogs in the football team’s run to a fourth consecutive CIF State Bowl championship. Rice leads the Raiders with 16 points per game, but he struggled with his outside shot upon his return from football. In the loss at Manteca, Rice shot 2 of 15.

Cooper Wilson leads the Raiders with 62 three-pointers, including 20 over the last seven games. Sophomore Josh Hamilton has made at least one trey in 13 consecutive games.

“It’s important for our shooters to shoot within the flow of what we’re doing in our offense,” Wilson said. “If you’re out of balance and your mind and feet aren’t ready … we tend to shoot better when we recognize those things. We’re doing a much better job of recognizing them in the last five or six games. We’re picking our shots a lot better.”

Outside shooting is but one concern against the Buffaloes, who boast arguably the tallest and most talented frontcourt in VOL history. Hundal is a 6-foot-9 senior with an impressive offensive arsenal, while the 6-foot-9 Wooten – a senior bound for the University of Nevada – is the showman, a sky-walking dunk specialist.

The two combined for 20 rebounds and six blocked shots in the first meeting.

Central Catholic has reinforcements this time. James Bland and Conor Fenton have missed most of the season with injury, but both could play Wednesday. The 6-6, 295-pound Bland has missed about six weeks with an on again-off again bout of shin splints. Fenton, a 6-3 junior, has appeared in four games since returning from a broken ankle.

Their playing time will be dictated by Central Catholic’s foul situation. Wilson will likely start Daron Bland (6-2) and Malcolm Clayton (6-3) on Manteca’s towering post.

“What’s nice is that we got kids coming back who have been hurt for a while,” Wilson said. “We are playing better and shooting the ball better. We’re seeing improvement every game.”

This story was originally published February 15, 2016 at 5:26 PM with the headline "Central focus: Raiders look to avenge loss to Manteca in VOL finale."