Strong Stanislaus District presence in NorCal semifinal rounds

That the semifinal rounds of the CIF Northern California regional playoffs have arrived with a strong Stanislaus District presence should come as no surprise.

The Modesto Christian boys basketball team has won at least one game in the regional tournament since 2012, including four straight semifinal appearances in the Open Division.

The Crusaders (31-1) will host Sheldon of Elk Grove (23-5) on Tuesday, but will shift to the roomier Modesto Junior College gymnasium.

Central Catholic (27-5) is back in the semifinal round for the second time in three years. The Raiders will host Palma of Salinas (24-4), continuing a tournament lined with coastal giants.

Manteca (26-6) is making its first appearance in a regional semi. The Valley Oak League and Sac-Joaquin Section Division III runner-ups will welcome Archbishop Riordan of San Francisco (12-16).

The games will tip off at 7 p.m.

Each team is vying for a berth in a Northern California final, a perch Modesto Christian is all too familiar with. The Crusaders reached the state’s penultimate game last season, losing to eventual state champion Bishop O’Dowd (Oakland).

The Crusaders advanced to Tuesday’s semifinal round with a 54-51 victory over Saint Francis (Mountain View), which had a chance to tie or win the game in the final seconds. The Lancers trailed by as many as eight points in the fourth quarter, but whittled the deficit to two with less than 15 seconds remaining.

Saint Francis pushed the ball up the floor following a missed free throw and called a timeout with 1.6 seconds left. However, the inbounds pass to Noah Stapes in the corner was off the mark and the Crusaders were fouled on the change of possession, icing the win from the line.

“That a pretty tough team,” senior Jordan Hollins-Buckner said. “From now on, it’s win or go home. Everybody is giving it their best. This was kind of difficult, but we just have to stick with it and try to make it to the state championship. That’s our goal this year. We’ve been working hard for this moment, so we’re going to keep pushing.”

Modesto Christian-Sheldon is a rematch of the Sac-Joaquin Section Division I semifinal won by the Crusaders, 74-67.

The Huskies set up their second shot at Modesto Christian by upsetting third-seeded Moreau Catholic on Friday, 88-85.

The Crusaders weren’t nearly as prolific on offense against the Lancers. Point guard Christian Ellis (six rebounds and three assists) was slowed by early foul trouble and 6-foot-10 forward Robinson Idehen (seven rebounds and five blocks) was sandwiched by the double team. The senior catalysts and Modesto Bee Player of the Year candidates had six points apiece.

The offensive punch came from a strong supporting cast.

Senior Jay Chen had a team-high 15 points and scored the final six points of the first half to help Modesto Christian answer a 10-2 charge by Saint Francis with a 6-1 run of its own.

Sophomore shooting guard Darrian Grays was 3 of 7 from behind the arc and finished with 12 points, while Hollins-Buckner scored all seven of his points in the fourth quarter.

That versatility was encouraging to coach Richard Midgley, whose team has won 31 consecutive games and defeated three straight state-ranked opponents (Sheldon, Folsom and Saint Francis).

“They did an incredible job crowding the paint. There wasn’t a lot of space for Christian and they double- and triple-teamed Robinson. So we needed other guys to step up,” Midgley said. “Darrian hit some shots in the first half and Jordan the second half; Jay did a great job getting into the paint. We only scored 54 points, but every point was big.”

Central Catholic will welcome another Central Coast Section Open Division participant to its cozy gymnasium.

Three days after spoiling Santa Cruz’s season with an 84-63 rout, the Raiders will host third-seeded Palma in what likely will be the final varsity basketball game contested in that space. Central Catholic is expected to cut the ribbon on its state-of-the-art facility later this spring.

The Chieftains edged Mission of San Francisco 73-68 in their quarterfinal. Palma also owns a double-digit victory (66-55) over Santa Cruz.

Junior Jamaree Bouyea led the charge against Mission with 21 points, eight assists and five steals as Palma clinched its first semifinal berth.

“I’ve never been here before. It’s a great feeling,” Bouyea told Prep2Prep.com “I want to win state and I feel we have a great chance.”

Central Catholic shares that same desire.

The Raiders came close in 2014 when Wilson had arguably the second-best D-V team in the state. Central Catholic lost to eventual state champion St. Joseph Notre Dame (Alameda) in the NorCal final, 54-42.

While they have secured film on Palma – the Chieftains beat Patterson 63-52 in December – Jarred Rice believes the Raiders’ strength of schedule has prepared them for a run at the school’s first-ever basketball state title.

“The VOL really helped us out. Everyone knows the VOL is a tough league. Playing that (schedule) has boosted our confidence level for the playoffs,” said Rice, who scored a team-high 19 points in the win over Santa Cruz. “We know we’ve been there before.

“We’ve played good teams and been in stressful situations. We’re experienced. We’re going to give our best effort and hopefully make a bigger run, do good next and move on.”

This story was originally published March 14, 2016 at 12:00 PM with the headline "Strong Stanislaus District presence in NorCal semifinal rounds."