Potpourri, Dec 30

News Bits

Ethan Kassel: "BREAKING: Dougherty Valley has won its appeal to the CIF. Dublin High transfer and UC Davis commit Jalen Stokes is eligible to play, effective immediately."

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Sat, Dec 28, NCAA D1 scores and more

Boise State 73, San Jose State University 71 box. The host Spartans lost a seven point halftime lead. Former SJSU point Alvaro Cardenas finished with seven points on seven shot attempts, 10 assists and five turnovers in 38 minutes. A blocked Spartan layup with one second to go proved to be the difference.

Utah State 67, San Diego State 66 box. The Aztecs lost a nine-point halftime lead in San Diego.

UC Davis 109, Cal Maritime 46 box. A 61-20 initial 20 minutes broke the game open.

Santa Clara 91, Pepperdine 80 box. The host Broncos enjoyed a nine-point halftime lead and maintained it. Wing Elijah Mahi did not play for SC due to injury.

St. Mary's 70, Pacific 60 box. game preview. The host Gaels scored 34 and then 36 points in each half to Pacific's 17 and 43. In 35 minutes, former walk-on Luke (Piedmont High) Barrett posted a line of 20 points, 10 boards, five assists, two steals and one blocked shot.

San Francisco 70, Loyola Marymount 55 box. With the better defensive effort and more made treys, USF downed the squad from southern California. The Dons shot 11-34 from long distance and LMU went 3-19.

Sun, Dec 29, NCAA D1 scores and more

Minnesota 90, Morgan State 68 box. Mike (Archbishop Mitty/Pepperdine) Mitchell Jr. paced the Golden Gophers with 22 first half points, shooting 8-10 overall and 6-8 from long distance.

Green Bay loses again, this time 83-67 to Purdue Fort Wayne as Anthony (Dublin High/USF) Roy continues to ride the bench. But Roy is suffering from a lower body injury incurred on December 14.

Incarnate Word 99, Texas Lutheran 48 box. Shooting 7-11 overall and 4-5 from three-point range, Dylan (Healdsburg High) Hayman finished with 18 points plus five boards in the rout.

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Sat, Dec 28, CCCMBCA scores and more

Modesto Junior College 103, Folsom Lake College 63

Contra Costa College 71, Mendocino College 63

Santa Rosa Junior College 95, San Joaquin Delta College 66

Sun, Dec 29 CCCMBCA scores and more

Shasta College 65, Allan Hancock College 64 box.

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"Jim Larrañaga reveals 'ridiculous' conversations about NIL led him to retirement"

He is 75 and the world of recruitment he knows of is but a fond memory. A few coaches can afford to walk away but the vast majority can't. Miami should have a decent NIL honeypot to dole out but the makeups of new rosters nowadays is at best a projected guess.

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Ersin Demir's latest draft analysis has San Diego State sophomore Miles (Lincoln High) Byrd going to Boston with the 28th pick in the first round.

Santa Clara junior wing Elijah Mahi is still in the early-20s, heading to Oklahoma City at #23.

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Boss Mhoon: "Blessed to have received my first Division 1 offer from UC San Diego."

The 2028 King's Academy talent is a 6-foot-4, 170 pound wing with major grades.

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Damarion Vann-Kelly: "I will be @ Florida International University December 29th-31st!"

He's racking up an impressive number of frequent flyer miles. But will he go 3,000 miles away from home? He's at 1,800 in attending Northeast Oklahoma College.

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Jake Lieberman: "6’5 2027 SG Zachary Downer out of Hodan Prep in Canada tells me that he’s receiving interest from Clemson, Arizona State, Portland, San Francisco, Seattle, Sam Houston State & Youngstown State."

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Jake Lieberman: "6’2 guard Tobias Prall out of Southeast Arkansas Community College tells me that he’s gaining interest from Wagner, Academy Of Art University, Wheeling University, Virginia Union, Cape Breton, among others. In the past five games, Prall is averaging 24 points (54% 3PT) & 7 RPG."

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Arman Jovic: "6’6 Mantas Juzenas has committed to Saint Mary’s per JonasLeksas. Mantas has been one of the top youth Lithuanian prospects for a while now, making his commitment to Saint Mary’s a big one for them. He joins one of the Lithuanian’s best college players in Paulius Murauskas at Saint Mary’s. Mantas is currently averaging 5.3 PPG for Lithuania’s most prominent club playing behind 5 former NBA players like Lonnie Walker and Ignas Brazdeikis. Big time get for the Gaels."

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365 Recruits: "2027 7’0 Center, Obinna Ekezie Jr is an absolute beast on both sides of the ball. He dunks everything around the rim. He is a great shot blocker.

He currently holds offers from:

• Cal
• Houston
• Stanford
• Arizona St
• Texas A&M
• USC
• UCLA
• Kansas
• Kentucky
• Alabama"

He's at Prolific Prep.

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Potpourri, Dec 27

News Bits

Shams Charania: "The Miami Heat are converting two-way forward Keshad Johnson on a standard two-year NBA contract, sources told ESPN. Johnson has spent the season as a standout player for Heat's G League affiliate, Sioux Falls, averaging 21.2 points and 8.3 rebounds per game."

Wonderful news! Great to see this happen to a player who won't be a big points producer in the NBA but is a multiple position defender, understands what to do when, is a willing passer and will dunk in the blink of an eye.

Here's much much more on Johnson's move up.

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"Cal-Hi Sports Northern California Boys Basketball Player of the Week Manno Jenkins (Natomas, Sacramento) Jr.

Our last stop this week takes us to a school north of the State Capitol that is only a few miles from the California Interscholastic Federation’s headquarters (also in the Natomas area of the town). It’s there where we find a 6-foot-1 junior who continues to improve each season.

Manno was the man for the Nighthawks last season as a sophomore when he averaged 18.8 points, 5.3 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 3.4 steals for a 25-10 team that lost by just 64-61 to Monterey in the CIF NorCal D4 championship. Monterey won the state title over Chatsworth several days later. Jenkins was named first team All-Metro by the Sacramento Bee.

Jenkins had his first really big outing last week in a 62-56 win by Natomas over Willow Glen of San Jose. He knocked down 32 points, grabbed seven rebounds, gave out six assists and collected seven steals. So far in 10 reported games (the Nighthawks are 6-4), Manno has averaged 22.2 ppg. His other averages are 5.6 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 3.1 steals."

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Jalen Green Elite: "Welcome Rajan Roberts to Jalen Green Elite 17u 3ssb! Rajan is a tough PG that currently plays for the Number 2 ranked High school in the country Prolific Prep. Rajan currently hold offers from Cal Berkeley, Xavier, NIU and more!

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"NCAA Waiver could help Pacific"

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6-foot-1, 170 pound Solano College sophomore guard Justiz (Vanden High) Wilson leads the state in scoring right now at a remarkable 28.8 points per game. He has improved his three-point and overall shooting percentages (to 45% and 46% respectively) from his freshman season but is underwater in assists versus turnovers again in 2024-25. His assist numbers likely have taken a hit because 4-8 Solano (but consider that nine of the team's games have been of the road variety) is not all that good of a good shooting team and that it is also incumbent on Wilson to create point production.

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6-foot-11, 220 pound Butte College freshman center Jessy Maximin leads the state in rebounding at 16.6 boards a game. A native of the Turks and Caicos Islands, he also has 32 blocked shots in 17 games thus far and is shooting 65% from the floor. There isn't much size on the Butte squad which favors Maximin's rebounding totals but credit him for achieving his spectacular boarding numbers because he is going up and grabbing missed shots likely among more than one decent sized opponent.

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6-foot-8, 200 pound Nigerian Tochi Onyeador is tops in the state right now with 48 blocked shots in 12 games and it appears he will repeat, having earned the Bay Valley Conference Defensive Player of the Year last season. He is also prominent with 12.6 rebounds per contest (very strong on the defensive end). Onyeador shoots well close in at 68% but isn't a points producer (8.8 points an outing).

Here's a recent feature: "LMC center takes his career to next level Tochi Onyeador’s competitive spirit strengthens his game"

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Nick DePaula: "BREAKING: Memphis Grizzlies rookie standout Jaylen Wells has signed with Nike. The 39th overall pick was the October & November Western Conference Rookie of the Month and has emerged as a Rookie of the Year candidate this season."

Phil Knight makes an investment.

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"Pat Riley: Heat are not trading Jimmy Butler"

So is Jonathan Kuminga now safe?

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Dec 25, NCAA D1 scores

Hawai'i 73, Oakland 70 OT box. The reason for listing this game is simple: freshman guard Aaron (Salesian Prep)Hunkin-Claytor played 28 minutes (his most to date) and achieved four assists (his most to date) which led the Rainbow Warriors.

Dec 26, NCAA D1 scores

no games

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Dec 25 CCCMBCA scores

no games

Dec 26 CCCMBCA scores

no NorCal games

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Potpourri, Dec 25

News Bits

6-foot-5 De'Undrae (Salesian Prep) Perteete is a freshman at Westmont College (near Santa Barbara) and in 12 games/starts and 33 minutes a contest, he is averaging 8.9 points and 4.9 rebounds while shooting 44%, 41% and 68% respectively. 

Another Salesian grad doing well.

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Lakers' most controversial contract is finally beginning to pay off

Gabe Vincent is showing his critics that they were too quick to write him off."

Vincent prepped at Stockton's St. Mary's High and played for the Oakland Soldiers.

..................................

"James Nunnally ready to return: “It’s all going to be over on Tuesday”

James Nunnally isn't done playing overseas just yet. Born in San Jose, he prepped at Weston Ranch High in Stockton. He has played for quite the number of NBA teams but never been able to carve out a role for himself. His overseas teams are also numerous.

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Art U Urban Knights: "Shooting over 50 percent from the field for the third time this season, ARTU MBB made its move midway through the opening half and never looked back, topping Chaminade for the Urban Knights' fifth victory in their last six games!"

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Sam C. Ehrlich: "We have our first (of potentially many?) Pavia lawsuit clones. Southern Miss basketball player John Wade III has filed a lawsuit challenging the JUCO bylaw on antitrust grounds..."

The 6-foot-4 Wade is a former Contra Costa College, Cal State Northridge and Stanislaus State  student-athlete and prepped at American Canyon High. He has yet to play for SoMiss this season which may be involved in the pressing the lawsuit.

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Returning from an early season injury, 6-foot-3 Swarthmore College (PA) freshman guard Zander (Salesian Prep) Jimenez has participated in four of nine games, started one and averaged 19 minutes a contest. He is scoring 9.3 points per game while shooting 36%, 56% and 89% respectively and grabbing 3.0 rebounds an outing, split evenly between offensive and defensive boards. Jimenez also has six steals.

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6-foot-3 junior guard Nick (American River College) Graves has started strong at Waldorf University in Iowa as in 12 games/four starts and 20 minutes a contest, he is scoring 10.3 points nightly and shooting 46%, 42% and 82% respectively. Graves is also grabbing 2.4 rebounds and earning 1.7 assists per outing.

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Mon, Dec 23, NCAA D1 scores

Seattle 79, Washington 70 box. For UW, Tyler (Granada High/Portland) Harris enjoyed a solid game with 20 points and six boards, shooting 7-10, 2-2, and 4-6 respectively. game report.

On Sunday, Hawai'i bested Charlotte 78-61 with Marcus (Archbishop Mitty/Houston Christian) Greene totaling 22 points, four rebounds and three assists.

No games, Tue, Dec 24

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"Amundsen Brings in Second Straight Rookie of the Week Honor"

The Clovis North High grad has jumped right in to D1 ball and immediately become Dartmouth's best player, even while playing the most challenging position, the point.

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6-foot-9 DaJon "Money" Lott moved on from Sacramento City College after two seasons to Western Washington University and up in the Evergreen State he has played in 12 games/11 starts and 18 minutes a contest, while averaging 9.3 points plus 4.0 boards. "Money" is shooting 45%, 29% and 65% respectively. He has a team best 13 blocked shots plus 11 steals.

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Mon, Dec 23, CCCMBCA scores

Cosumnes River College 69, Sacramento City College 62

American River College 57, Diablo Valley College 48 DVC box. Marshawn (Weston Ranch High) Smith scored 25 points in the losing cause.

No games, Tue, Dec 24

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Potpourri, Dec 23

News Bits

Dec 20, NCAA D1 scores

Loyola Marymount 89, Southern University 73 box. Alex (Modesto Christian High) Merkviladze performed loudly via 27 points, seven rebounds and four assists, shooting a very efficient 7-11, 6-7, 4-4 respectively.

Dec 21, NCAA D1 scores

Dartmouth 84, Vermont 54 box. Freshman guard Connor (Clovis North High) Amundsen led with 25 points as the Ivy Leaguers had no trouble, leading 45-28 at the half.

Texas Tech 101, Lamar 57 box. Darrion (Capital Christian/Nevada) Williams finished with 23 points, seven boards, five assists and a pair of blocked shots and TT has no trouble with in-state Lamar. Teammate Chance (St. Patrick St. Vincent/Bethel High/Grand Canyon) McMillian tallied 19 points.

Cal State Northridge 81, Chicago State 57 box. Mahmoud (Santa Yeresa High/West Valley College/Cal State San Bernardino) Fofana scored an efficient 17 points and grabbed six rebounds as Cal State Northridge bounced Chicago State 81-57. He shot 7-10 overall and 3-3 on the free throw line.

Minnesota 74, Fairleigh Dickinson 60 box. Senior Mick (Archbishop Mitty/Pepperdine) Mitchell Jr. provided 18 points, six boards and five assists and a 54-39 second 20 minutes produced the victory.

Idaho 95, Pacific 72 box. The Tigers enjoyed four starters finishing in double figures scoring but the Vandals shot 59%, 44% and 1,000% overall and won going away.

Santa Clara 98, South Dakota 81 box. Five Broncos scored in double figures igniting a 60-39 first half lead.

San Francisco 71, Montana 67 box. Guard Marcus Williams scored 25 points for the host Dons who took a 10-point halftime lead. Montana has yet to win a road encounter.

Wichita State 84. Kansas State 65 box. Coleman (Antelope High/Prolific Prep/Illinois) Hawkins enjoyed nine rebounds, eight assists and three blocked shots but scored just six points on 2-9, 1-4 and 1-4 shooting.

Oregon 76, Stanford 61 box. The Palo Alto-ans were down 36-19 after 20 minutes and eventually led by Maxime Reynaud's 20 points/13 rebounds. They shot 37%, 27% and 7-13 at the foul line while Oregon went 22-29 on free throws.

San Jose State University 89, Kennesaw State 65 box. Spartan newcomer Josh Uduje led with 22 points, sophomore returnee Latrell Davis tallied 20 and newbie Sadirenne Hall posted a 17 point, 13 rebound double-double.

San Diego State 71, California 50 box. The Bears were down 25-15 after the initial 20 minutes and fell further with a 46-35 second half . For the game, Cal shot 25% overall and 21% on treys.

Drake topped Green Bay 72-62 with guard Anthony (Dublin High/USF) Roy still stuck tight on the latter's bench.

Dec 22, NCAA D1 scores

Iowa State 99, Morgan State 72 box. In 23 minutes, Dischon (St. Patrick St. Vincent/Washington State/Charlotte) Jackson scored 12 points with six shots taken and rejected five shots.

Sacramento State 98, Stanislaus State 47 box. In 30 minutes, guard Jason (Alameda High/Ohlone College) Cibull scored 17 points and dished out three assists, both team-leading for Stanislaus.

Utah State 75, St. Mary's 68 box. The visiting Aggies shot 30-51 (59%) in downing the Gaels.  Mitchell Saxen finished with 18 points and freshman Mikey (Prolific Prep) Lewis tallied 12 for the Moraga-ites.

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Dec 20, CCCMBCA scores

City College San Francisco 97, San Joaquin Delta College 68

West Valley College 80, Contra Costa College 40

San Jose City College 76, Columbia 70 SJCC box. Matt (Archbishop Mitty/Chabot College/Foothill College) McAndrews led the Jags with six assists 22 minutes and AB (Newark Memorial High) Gilchrest's 19 points led in scoring.

Las Positas College 94, Folsom Lake College 77 box. Elijah (Weston Ranch High) Mobley went for 28 points in the success.

Chabot College 84, Cabrillo College 82 Chabot box. Marcellus (Speights Academy) Edwards led CC (Hayward) with a bountiful 28 points and freshman Zion (Salesian Prep) Yeargin totaled 15 points and an equal number of rebounds.

Sierra College 61, Butte College 58

Merritt College 92, Simpson JV 71

Merced College 82, Monterey Peninsula College 68

Pasadena City College 87 , Shasta College 80

Feather River College 94, Gavilan College 67

Santa Rosa Junior College 80, College of the Redwoods 61 SRJC box. Spencer (Granada High) Langowski led the victors with 24 points.

Dec 21, CCCMBCA scores

City College San Francisco 80, West Valley College 76 (at the Delta tourney) John Bynum Jr.: "In a battle between two of the top teams in the state, John (St. Ignatius/Pepperdine) Squire had 28 points and All Tournament selection Miles Stuart Hall High) Amos added 16 points as San Francisco edged West Valley 80-76 on Saturday evening. CJ (Folsom High) Willenborg had a game high of 29 points and Robel (Oakland Tech) Zemmo added 18 points in the loss for the Vikings." CCCMBCA: "The four-point win was also San Francisco's second win over West Valley, having beaten the Vikings 89-85 on Nov. 22."

Chabot College 88, Gavilan College 69 CC box. Freshman guard Zion (Salesian Prep) Yeargin was en fuego again with 24 points on 11-14 overall shooting, 2-2 on trey attempts. He's playing his way into a D1 schollie for next year. Fellow soph Armani (Salesian Prep) Johnson contributed 15 points and sophomore Marcellus (Speights Academy) Edwards 13 with each also providing solid quantities of rebounds, assists and steals. A solid team win.

Butte College 94, Simpson JV 82

Contra Costa College 75, San Joaquin Delta College 60

Sierra College 75, Merritt College 35

Fresno City College 70, Cerritos College 60 CC box

Feather River College 66, Cabrillo College 51

Skyline College 76, Solano College 55

Ohlone College 71, Cosumnes River College 64 Ohlone MBB: "#23 Ohlone College takes down #19 Cosumnes River College 71-64 and moves to an 11-1 record!

• Gabriel Lopez 18 pts, 14 reb, 4 ast
• Amos Hodgson 16 pts, 2 reb, 2 stl
• Anthony Lacy 15 pts, 10 reb, 4 ast
• Michael Fastion 6 pts, 6 reb, 3 blk
• DeVon Mack 4 pts, 4 stl, 4 reb"

Cañada College 74, College of Alameda 68

College of the Redwoods 76, Foothill College 68

Santa Rosa Junior College 80, Pasadena City College 73

Dec 2 CCCMBCA scores

no games

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Also on Saturday:

Cal Poly Humboldt edged host Westmont College 79-73 despite 6-foot-5 freshman De'Undrae (Salesian Prep) Perteete compiling 15 points (5-7 on threes) plus five boards, four assists and a pair of steals. Hooping in Montecito, what a combo!

Stanislaus State bested Cal State Monterey Bay in overtime 69-68 as William (Bishop O'Dowd) Chavarin scored 19 points, 10 at the foul line, plus five boards, four assists and three steals. Teammate Jason (Alameda High/Ohlone College) Cibull contributed 11 points and matched the team high in assists with four in 31 minutes. For CSUMB, Michael Mora (out of Palo Alto) led the Sea Otters with both 19 points (5-10 on treys) and eight boards.

Host Menlo College pounded on Dominican University 91-68 with Landon (Wood High) Seaman enjoying 16 points and teammate Nick Davidson providing 15 points and a team high six boards. The two teams play again on January 4 but this one is in San Rafael. 

Cal Maritime went into overtime versus Tabor and lost 92-91. This despite receiving 21 points, 11 rebounds and six assists via Jamal (Newark Memorial High/Bethany College KAN) Frenchwood plus DeAndre (Carlmont High/Skyline College) Minor's 20 points.

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City College San Francisco Men's Basketball: "Congrats to sophomore Miles Amos on getting his first D1 offer from Seattle."

Amos is a 6-foot-2, 200 guard who prepped at Stuart Hall High. His current numbers: 7.0 points, 3.3 rebounds and 3.6 assists while shooting 52%, 33% and 65% respectively. He owns a very good 43/11 assist-to-turnover match in 12 games. Seattle has two players out of Marin County on its current roster.

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Catching up on William Jessup hoops:

On the 19th (Thursday), host William Jessup University topped Menlo College 72-68 in a PacWest Conference pairing. For the victors, Anthony Enoch went for 25 points and 14 boards, Tamatoa Humbert scored 18 points and Aydan Janssan led with both 15 boards and five assists. For Menlo, Preston McGassick led with both 23 points plus seven steals and teammate Landon (Wood High) Seaman scored 20 points and gathered in a team high nine rebounds. WJU shot 18-24 at the foul line, MC just 5-8.

On the 21st (Saturday), host WJU tripped to Orange County to meet up with Vanguard University in PacWest Conference action and fell 80-73. Ja'Maris Blackmon led with 18 points, Aydan Janssen grabbed 14 rebounds and guard Troy (Sheldon High) Crighton scored 10 point in 25 minutes.

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The play of rookie Jonathan (USF) Mogbo continues to be highly praised by staff in  his Toronto Raptor organization.

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In 10 games/three starts and 26 minutes an outing for Regis University in Denver, 6-foot-2 sophomore Jalen (Modesto Christian High) Brown is averaging a second-on-the-team 13.2 points per contest, shooting 48%, 27% and 69% respectively. He is pulling down 2.9 rebounds a night with 17 assists and 17 turnovers.

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Modesto Christian Basketball: "Congratulations to Gavin Sykes for hitting the 1,000-point milestone! Gavin hit the mark today with 21 points in a win over American Fork (Utah) at the Tarkanian Classic in the Nike Division. This is only the 14th time in MC boys basketball history for a player to accomplish this feat."

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Hoop Herald: "If you could go back in time and only draft one of these two players to your favorite team, who do you choose?

LeBron James 46.7%

Steph Curry 53.3%"

I really can't decide. James offers more on the boards and defensively. Curry is the best shooter ever.

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Pro Insight: "6’7” 2026 Chidi Nwigwe has received an offer from Stanford University."

He attends Sunrise Christian (KAN), weighs 200 pounds and is a wing.

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"Teams With Roster Turnover Are Struggling In 2024-25"

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Bleacher Report is out with a very early look at the two rounds of the NBA draft.

The first round early spots are mostly owned by foreign players but San Diego Stater Miles (Lincoln High) Byrd appears at #25. Stanford's Maxime Reynaud is off the board at #36. Andrej Stojakovic of California is selected at # 48. Darrion (Capital Christian/Nevada) Williams of Texas Tech is chosen with the 50th pick. overall, 59 selection are made. Most of the second-rounders are unknown to me.

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West Coast Conference All League predictions by Lucca Mazzie

His is a new hoops site.

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Ethan Kassel: "Clayton Valley star and USU Basketball commit Elijah Perryman is out indefinitely with a broken bone in his foot. Could cost him the rest of the regular season. Shame, he had been playing so well."

He has actually signed with Utah State so his college future is set but still, you want to go out strong as a high school senior and develop some great memories. Let's hope he can return.

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Potpourri, Dec 20

News Bits

William Jessup University's 5-foot-10 guard Troy (Sheldon High/Elk Grove High) Crighton enjoyed a very efficient night in the recent Jessup 79-52 victory versus Dominican University in which he scored 15 points on 6-7, 2-2, 1-2 shooting—what economy and all in 28 minutes. He is shooting 52%, 33% and 75% on the season.

..."WJU head coach Mark Darnall spoke on Crighton's production after the game, noting, 'We're always asking our guys to make the most of their minutes when their number is called, and Troy answered tonight. He's been in this spot before, so we knew what to expect of him...'"

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JUCO Football Frenzy: "Big ruling by a court today that JUCO athletes who play college sports, retain all 4 years of NCAA eligibility even if they play a year or two of JUCO."

Here's much more on the subject.

The JC teams win because more high schoolers will be heading in that direction as NCAA teams shift focus to recruiting much more at the JUCO level.

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24/7's Joe Tipton attended the City of Palms Classic event and ranked the college prospects he witnessed on the first day:

"7. 3-star CG Melvin Bell Jr. (San Jose State)

Melvin Bell Jr. really impressed me tonight. The three-star out of La Lumiere (IN) has strong frame and a college-ready body. A hard-nosed player who excels in the paint and has the ability to stretch the floor. A steal for San Jose State. Finished with 21 points."

Bell Jr. signed in November with the Spartans.

Jake Lieberman: "2028 PG Jordan Hopkins out of Emerson HS (TX) & Drive National EYBL has been offered by San Jose State, he's told me. Other programs involved in his recruitment are the following:

• LSU (Offer)
• Memphis
• UCF
• Michigan State
• UTSA
• TCU
• Little Rock
• Wake Forest"

Hopkins will be an extremely tough sign for little ol' SJSU. Not sure why they are bothering with an offer—maybe there is some special connection.

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John Bynum Jr.: "Jake Davis (West Valley College) has received an offer from Fresno State. Davis is averaging 16.3 points and 4.8 rebounds this season for the Vikings. The sharp shooter is shooting 56% from Downtown this season."

Davis is a 6-foot-4 sophomore out of Las Lomas High.

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Shams Charania: "Milwaukee Bucks All-Star Damian Lillard has agreed to a lifetime contract extension with Adidas, sources told ESPN. Lillard now joins LeBron James and Kevin Durant (Nike) and Stephen Curry (Under Armour/Curry Brand) as active NBA players with lifetime shoe endorsements."

Few people know  that it came down to either me or Dame and I graciously told Adidas to give the lifetime contract to him since I have enough shoes. Wait, what? There giving him $$$ too? I had to settle for some stinkin' shoes which I rarely wear (getting me out of Crocs requires a bribe most cannot afford), not even when I'm turning out my eloquent award-winning prose. Seriously, good for Dame. Much deserved.

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On Wednesday, Green Bay lost 72-70 to mighty D2 Michigan Tech (actually a very good, lower level opponent), another game in which Anthony (Dublin High/USF) Roy didn't make an appearance.

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Skyline Basketball: "Congrats to DeAndre Minor for being selected as Cal Maritime’s first-ever Gilman Scholarship recipient. This highly competitive scholarship will help DeAndre build skills critical to our national security by providing the opportunity to study abroad. Proud of our #SkylineMBBFam."

The 6-foot-5 Minor prepped at Carlmont High. Congrats go out to him. No, I was never in the running for the Gilman Scholarship either.

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UC Santa Cruz fell 91-85 to Redlands on Wednesday despite receiving 19 points, 13 rebounds and a trio of blocked shot from 6-foot-9 junior Joseph (Pleasant Grove High) Espy. 5-foot-11 senior guard Ryan (Serra High/Skyline College/) Wilson led the Banana Slugs with seven assists.

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6-foot-5 feshman guard Mario (Venture Academy - Stockton) Williams Jr. scored 21 points in 19 minutes alongside securing seven boards and nabbing four steals in a 73-71 Western Oregon University victory over Linfield College (OR).

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"Cal-Hi Sports Northern California Boys Basketball Player of the Week Daniel Bibioff (Kerman) Sr.

We don’t need to look up Kerman’s location like we do for many of our weekly players of the week because we just did that a couple of weeks ago when the school’s football team was selected to play in a NorCal regional championship after winning the CIF Central Section D3 championship. Kerman isn’t far to the west of Fresno and was the furthest north school to win a section football title along with Central of Fresno in D1-AA.

Speaking of section titles, Bibioff made a name for himself in last season’s CIF Central Section D4 basketball final when he came up with a steal in the final seconds to give the Lions a 61-60 win vs Kerman.

Perhaps because of that momentum from last season, Daniel has erupted as a scoring machine this season. The 6-foot-2 senior guard had 41 points in his first game vs Sanger West and last week he remained on fire.

In a 70-50 win last week vs Chavez of Delano, Bibioff poured in 38 points. He then ended with week with a 51-point explosion in a 81-39 triumph over Firebaugh. Entering a game later this week vs Madera, Daniel is averaging 36.3 points to rank among the leading reported scorers in the state. He also was averaging 4.8 rebounds and 3.8 steals per game."

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Jordan Mehta: "In a win over Madera, Kingsburg’s Gus Swenning breaks the school single game scoring record with 49 points."

One look at the 6-foot-6 frontcourter : "Swenning is an athletic and physical forward that controls the glass and spaces the floor with the 3-ball. Swenning had a solid 8 points and 6 rebounds in his first game, which earned him a spot in the Top 30 Game where he had 8 points and 8 rebounds connecting on a pair of threes. Swenning uses his size to control the boards, has good touch on finishes around the basket, can play back to the basket or facing up, has enough handle to get downhill off the perimeter, and is a threat beyond the arc. Swenning has good bounce, alters shots around the cup, and gets up the court in transition to make himself available for easy layups and dunks. Swenning could be a key piece for Clovis North, as they look to replace the post presence of Jaylen Bryant and Malik Musleh."

He was attending Clovis North High but now seems to be at Kingsburg High.

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Wed, Dec 18, NCAA D1 scores

LeMoyne 80, Dartmouth 76 box. Freshman Connor (Clovis North High) Amundsen scored 13 points shooting 4-9, 2-3 and 3-4, grabbed three boards and dished out a trio of assists in 38 minutes, most on the team.

Bradley 66, San Francisco 64 box. USF guard Malik Thomas buried a trey at the buzzer for the final score. The Dons led by two at the half.

UC Davis 74, Idaho 66 box. Ty Johnson led the Aggies with 19 points while Vandal Takai (Vanden High/Sunrise Prep) Hardy earned a 13 point, 10 rebound double-double.

Santa Clara 94, Kennesaw State 74 box. The Broncos shot 50% overall and made 27-34 free throws.

Washington 89, Washington State 73 box. for UW, forward Tyler (Granada High/Portland) Harris tallied 14 points but grabbed just a single rebund in 34 minutes.

Thu, Dec 19, NCAA D1 scores

Incarnate Word 101, Schreiner 57 box. Dylan (Healdsburg High) Hayman provided 13 points, five boards and two assists versus a DIII opponent. Without really focusing, it initially looked like IW was going up against the Shriners.

St. Mary's 73, Merrimack 68 box. Mitchell Saxen loomed large with 18 points plus 12 caroms and teammate Paulius Murauskas demonstrated his almost equal effectiveness via 18 points and 11 boards.

Texas 98, New Orleans 62 box. Jordan (Freedom High/Prolific Prep/Oregon State) Pope exploded for 42 points as the Longhorns finished one basket shy of the century mark. He took a total of 21 shots and shot 8-12 from three-point range.

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Wed, Dec 18, CCCMBCA scores

Cañada College 74, Merced College 73

Cosumnes River College 84, DeAnza College 52 full box 6-foot-7 freshman Mason (Whitney High) Marsh enjoyed the best stat game for the victors with 16 points (6-9, 1-1, 3-4 shooting respectively) plus nine boards, four assists and three steals.

Lower Columbia 89, Monterey Peninsula College 67

Chabot College 78, Diablo Valley College 66

Thu, Dec 19, CCCMBCA scores

City College San Francisco 119, Merritt College 51

West Valley College 70, Sierra College 64

College of San Mateo 75, Reedley College 65 Reedley box

Contra Costa College 88, Butte College 76

Los Medanos College 66, Mendocino College 62

College of the Sequoias 82, Cerritos College 53 box. Leyton McGovern led the charge with 29 points plus 10 boards, four assists and two steals. Tyree (Burbank High) Gill finished with 20 points, eight rebounds, four assists and a trio of steals. 

College of Alameda 64, Solano College 63

Yuba College 83, College of Marin 68

Shasta College 91, Foothill College 86

DeAnza College 65, American River College 51

Skyline College 85, Lemoore College 70 

College of the Redwoods 74, Pasadena City College 68

San Joaquin Delta College 95, Simpson University JV 67

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Potpourri Dec 18

News Bits

The Mercury News is reporting that guard Jalen Stokes, who left Dublin High for Dougherty Valley High in late July, has been denied athletic eligibility at DVH. Stokes will appeal the curious timed ruling. The distance between the schools is 4.8 miles. Stokes signed with UC Davis in November.

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Ethan Kassell: "Hard to express just how much better USF is when Ryan Beasley gets to direct the offense. Created so much more for Malik Thomas. Amazing turnaround from the first 13 minutes."

So why isn't the 5-foot-11 sophomore Beasley starting or playing more minutes?

In 10 games/no starts and 25 minutes a contest, Beasley is averaging 5.6 points on 39%, 28% and 69% shooting respectively. Additionally, he has 21 assists to 11 turnovers thus far. What has no accessible number is his effectiveness in operating the USF offense and how he sets up his teammates.

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Coach Manfredi: "Congrats to Aiden Rollins for becoming the 6th player in Franklin High athletics history to eclipse the 1,000 point scoring mark! This outstanding student, player, & young man reached the milestone in his 66th game!"

Here's our 2023 Rollins feature.

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San Jose City College Coach Devin Aye checks in on former top talent Isaiah Sams-Hoy who is playing at Alaska Fairbanks.

ISH graduated from Eastside College Prep and attended Chabot College and SJCC before heading north.

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6-foot-11 Aussie Charles Johnston enjoyed a very solid season -- 13.0 points and 10.7 rebounds per game -- at Cal State Monterey Bay in 2023-24, then went portaling and signed with Furman University located in South Carolina. Thus far this season, in eight game/no starts and 12.6 minutes a contest, he is averaging 7.1 points and 2.6 rebounds with shooting percentages of 55%, 43% and 75%. He has two bigs in front of him, one a grad student who will be departing after the season and the other a 6-foot-11 sophomore.

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"The top five teams — San Francisco, Fullerton, Las Positas, West Valley and Citrus — remained unchanged in this week’s CCCMBCA Poll. However, after that, there was a lot of movement, some significant..."

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Jake Lieberman: "6'9 prospect Luke Oxford out of Seminole State College is receiving interest from the following programs:

• Northwestern State
• Tarleton State
• Houston Christian
• UAPB
• Central Oklahoma
• East Central
• MSU Denver
• Menlo"

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Jake Lieberman: "2026 6'4 guard Noah George from Bella Vista Prep HS (AZ) is in contact with the following, he's told me:

• Washington
• Arizona State (Offer)
• Georgia Tech (O)
• Oregon (O)
• UCSB (O)
• Bowling Green (O)
• NAU (O)
• Cal 
• New Mexico State"

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JUCO For Playing Time: "JC Stats: 5’11 Freshman Guard Trey Knight of Tacoma CC had a standout performance with 31 points, 4 rebounds, and shooting 10-16 from the field. Knight, a transfer from Cal State East Bay, is averaging 10.9 points, 1.8 rebounds, and 1.6 assists through 9 games in the NWAC."

Great point explosion and credit is deserved -- at his size, he'll need to be a point at a four-year school so do keep track of his assist totals throughout the season. Here's hoping he is positioned at the point.

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UC Merced Men's Basketball: "Austin Dewes making some noise! Dewes recorded a career-high four blocks at Cal State Monterey Bay and is your Cal Pac Defensive Player of the Week. He is just the fifth player in program history with at least four blocks in a game!"

The 6-foot-10 sophomore is out of Alhambra High in Martinez.

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6-foot-3 sophomore Aidan (Archbishop Mitty/Phillips Exeter Academy) Burke has played in all 11 games/no starts at close to 12 minutes an outing  for 9-2 UC San Diego this season. He is shooting remarkably well considering his fairly brief court times (47%, 47%, 40% shooting respectively) and averaging 4.6 points per contest.

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Monday, Dec 16 NCAA D1 scores

Texas Tech  , Oral Roberts  box. From the backcourt, Chance (Bethel High/Golden State College Prep/Grand Canyon) McMillian provided a team high 20 points plus five assists in shooting 8-9, 3-4 and 1-1 respectively while wing Darrion (Capital Christian/Bishop Gorman/Nevada) Williams led TT with nine assists and added 10 points.

Northern Iowa 104, Montana 76 box. NI bopped Montana in both 20 minute sessions (48-34 and 56-42) despite Montana's Money (Oakland High) Williams finishing with 15 points in 25 minutes.

Tuesday, Dec 17 NCAA D1 scores

Oregon State 82, Sacramento State 45 box. A 52-25 OSU second half put the game out of reach.

Stanford 74, Merrimack 68 box. Oziyah (Modesto Christian High/USC) Sellers paced the Cardinal with 19 points and teammate Maxime Reynaud posted a 16 point, 16 rebound double-double. 

Drake 73, Kansas State 70 OT box. For KS, Coleman (Antelope High/Prolific Prep/Illinois) Hawkins filled the stat sheet with 16 points, five boards, five assists, four steals and a pair of blocked shots.

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Tuesday, Dec 17 CCCMBCA scores

Citrus College 94, Fresno City College 77 box.

Porterville College 68, College of San Mateo 64

San Joaquin Delta College 60. Lower Columbia College 51

College of Alameda 77, Napa Valley College 69 

Yuba College 95, Solano College 58

Columbia College 91, Gavilan College 76 

Foothill College 92, Sacto City College 79

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