Pitman’s Diaz, Central Valley’s Mabie, El Capitan’s Knott net MVP awards

Jando Diaz trusted a tried-and-true blueprint: “How to play like a champion.”

If he put in the time on the practice court and in the weight room, sacrificing his offseason in the process, the Pitman High School boys basketball program would reap the rewards. All the rewards, too.

The Pride was the big winner at the Central California Conference’s year-end coaches meeting, earning two major awards to go with a share of the conference crown.

Diaz was named CCC MVP after leading Pitman in scoring, rebounding, assists and steals. He credited a six-day-a-week workout regimen for his success.

“It represents all of the time I’ve put in. The work finally paid off in a reward as important as this one,” said Diaz, who hopes to play at the collegiate level. He lists Portland State, Point Loma Nazarene, Azusa Pacific and UC Merced as desired destinations. “There are some good players in this league, like Habib (Velasquez of Turlock) and A.J. Stewart (of Merced), but I knew the time and work I put in would give me a shot.”

Harvey Marable shared the Coach of the Year honor with Turlock’s Doug Cornfoot.

The Pride and Bulldogs tied atop the CCC standings at 8-2 and split their series. Pitman edged Turlock on the regular season’s final day to force the title share.

In a strange twist of fate, a rubber match was scheduled by the Sac-Joaquin Section’s playoff seeding committee. The rivals were pitted against each other in the Division I play-in game, with the winner advancing to play top-seeded Folsom. Pitman won in overtime 72-69.

Diaz had 23 points, 10 rebounds and two assists, delivering a performance worthy of the MVP award.

He admitted an MVP award without a conference title wouldn’t have been as satisfying.

“It’s enhanced by the fact that we won the CCC,” Diaz said. “The MVP award is an individual accolade. If I was to get (the MVP) without winning league, it wouldn’t have been as great.”

Diaz averaged 17.2 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.6 steals in all games. He had four conference games with 20 or more points.

“I do whatever is needed,” Diaz said. “If a coach was to tell me, you’re running the post, ‘All right, coach, I’m running the post.’

“If I was to play point guard, my first look is to get others a shot. Sometimes, though, a point guard has to step up and knock down the occasional shot when we need it.”

Diaz was joined on the first team by teammate Isaiah Marable. Turlock had two first-team selections in Oscar Moreno and Velasquez. Merced’s Jared Pazin and Stewart, and Atwater’s Kyle Anaya and Reggie Ricks filled out the first team.

Central Valley’s Mabie nets top award

Western Athletic Conference coaches couldn’t pass on the Queen of Pass.

Central Valley point guard Mikayla Mabie was named the WAC’s MVP after guiding the Hawks to a share of their third title in 11 seasons.

Mabie, a third-year varsity senior, was in control throughout the season. She finished second in the nation in assists per game at 10.1, but more impressive was an assist-to-turnover ratio of better than 5-to-1.

“There are girls from all over the place, and then you see smalltown Ceres. It’s shocking,” Mabie said of MaxPreps’ national leader board.

It’s not so shocking for those who have watched her play. Mabie began her career at Turlock High as a freshman on the varsity team. There, she learned to become a facilitator by default.

As the pup, she often deferred to older teammates. Soon, she embraced her role as point guard and a pass-first mentality.

“I had to step up quickly, and I never wanted to be selfish,” Mabie said of her trial by fire as a freshman starting in a Division I league. “I always wanted to include my teammates, and that has stayed with me.

“I realized I liked passing way more than shooting. When someone catches a pass and knocks it down, I get way happier than I do if I score.”

Mabie also averaged a team-high 12.2 points but sacrificed a loftier scoring average to get her teammates involved. She posted five double doubles in conference play.

“She’s the best we’ve ever had,” Central Valley athletic director Greg Magni said, noting Chico State and Stanislaus State have expressed interest.

Mabie is a well-rounded student-athlete who is running track for the Hawks.

Central Valley (18-8, 11-1) shared the conference title with Livingston (19-9, 11-1), which had two players – Sharn Sahota and Tina Lao – named to the first team.

Livingston’s Nina Garcia was named Coach of the Year.

Adrianna Haynes of Central Valley, Nicole Bates of Ceres and Jadan Rodriguez of Patterson rounded out the all-WAC first team.

Knott named WAC boys MVP

El Capitan senior point guard Isaiah Knott was named the Western Athletic Conference MVP after leading the Gauchos to the championship. Knott finished in the top five in the conference in all six statistical categories graded by the coaches, including first in assists (5.8) and steals (4.6).

El Capitan’s Chris Tufts was named Coach of the Year, completing a historic campaign for the city of Merced’s youngest school. The Gauchos went 11-1 in conference play and qualified for the Sac-Joaquin Section postseason for the first time. El Capitan was eliminated in the first round of the Division III playoffs by Manteca, which played for the CIF Northern California Division III championship Saturday.

Knott was the catalyst on a team that also featured all-conference first-team selection James Sellers. Knott averaged a team-high 15.3 points and had the ball in his hands 80 percent of the time, Tufts told the Merced Sun-Star.

Sellers was joined on the first team by Ceres’ Haaydn Martinez, Los Banos’ Cameryn Gomez and Patterson’s Spirit Ricks and Nana Appiah.

This story was originally published March 19, 2016 at 6:18 PM with the headline "Pitman’s Diaz, Central Valley’s Mabie, El Capitan’s Knott net MVP awards."