January 2009 Archives
Sophomore tight end Keith Myers of San Bernardino Valley College has signed with Division II Livingstone College, located in Salisbury, N.C.
Myers, a 6-foot-5, 225-pounder, started 20 games in two years with the Wolverines, totaling 515 receiving yards and four touchdowns.
The Blue Bears play in the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association and are coming off a 3-6 campaign.
remained undefeated and in first place with a 69-64 win over the
Eagles.
Sophomore point guard Eisha Sheppard, out of Victor Valley High
School, led the charge with 24 points. Dwayanna Pullum contributed
12 points and seven rebounds and Ashleigh Frazier added 11. Brittany
Thompson tallied 15 rebounds.
Danielle Smith had 19 points and four assists to lead the Eagles
(18-6, 5-2).
to give the Wolverines a 76-66 win over visiting Mt. San Jacinto
Saturday in Foothill Conference play.
The win lifted SBVC (19-7, 6-1) into a tie for first place with
the Eagles who started the day unbeaten and with a one-game lead in
the conference.
Orlando Brazier added 20 points and nine rebounds and Sidney Hall
added 13 points and three assists. Warren Fuselier dished out a
team-high seven assists.
Melvin Goins led the Eagles (17-8, 6-1) with 19 points, five
rebounds and three assists.
The biggest difference came in shooting as he Wolverines shopt
46.5 percent and Mt. San Jacinto anaged just 36.1.
The San Bernardino Valley College women's basketball team may have a bit of a different look this year after graduating its top six players. But the Wolverines showed they aren't going to give up their Foothill Conference title easily.
The unranked Wolverines stayed on top of the conference with a 54-47 win over No. 8 Antelope Valley Saturday afternoon at Snyder Gymnasium, breaking a first-place tie between the two teams
The two teams came in tied for first place. It was also the second of four straight games against state-ranked foes for the Wolverines (14-8, 5-0). SBVC was coming off an 83-71 win over No. 12 Chaffey on Wednesday.
"We had 10 left, now nine," SBVC coach Sue Crebbin said. "We know every game in this conference is going to be a battle."
The first half ended with SBVC up 23-18, although neither team played its best basketball.
It wasn't until the middle of the second half that the Wolverines made the run that separated themselves from the Marauders (19-7, 4-1) for good.
Up 33-31, SBVC went on a 13-1 run, seven of those points coming from sophomore Dwayanna Pullum. Her last bucket in that run, a 3-pointer, boosted SBVC to a 46-31 lead with 5:48 to play. Pullum finished with 19 points.
The run was also fueled by a strong performance on the boards, with Pullum and Brittany Thompson shouldering the load. The Wolverines finished with a 53-46 advantage in that category.
"We don't rebound and we're not going to win," Crebbin said. "I challenged the guards to go in and help out there and they did a good job."
The Marauders didn't go away easily though. They were still down by double digits at 50-40 with 2:42 to go but were able to close the gap. They scored five of the next seven points, cutting it to 52-45 on a pair of free throws by Brittney Lloyd.
They had a chance to cut into that lead further, but a Lloyd miss was corralled by Pullum with 28 seconds left. The Wolverines were able to hang on from there.
Pullum, the lone SBVC player in double figures, also collected nine rebounds. Thompson snagged 11 boards and had nine points. Eisha Sheppard and Ashleigh Frazier had eight rebounds apiece.
The Marauders, who shot 31.3 percent (15-for-48) and had 21 turnovers, were led by sophomore forward Florida Siaosi, a former Sultana High School standout. She led all scorers with 22 points and had 14 rebounds, three steals and a blocked shot.
SBVC travels to No. 13 Rio Hondo (19-4, 3-2) on Wednesday and faces No. 11 Mt. San Jacinto (17-5, 4-1) at home next Saturday.
Things started out bad and got worse for the San Bernardino Valley College men's basketball team. The end result was a 78-61 loss to Antelope Valley in Foothill Conference play Saturday at Snyder Gymnasium.
The Wolverines (17-7, 4-1) started the day tied for first with Mt. San Jacinto. But SBVC didn't play like a first-place team.
The Wolverines shot just 38.7 percent (24-for-62) from the field, including a woeful 2-for-11 from long distance. They made just 11 of 23 free-throw attempts and committed 17 turnovers.
What coach Quincy Brewer saw was a team clearly not ready to play.
"We have to learn to handle success," he said. "We had won our first four conference games and they were feeling a little too good. We clearly weren't focused or concentrating on the game at hand."
The Wolverines were lucky to be in the game as long as they were but that was because the Marauders (15-10, 3-2) also got off to a slow start.
At the midway point of the first half Antelope Valley led 10-7. And it was just 28-22 at the half.
The Marauders fared better coming out of the locker room. They shot just 38.5 percent in the opening half but managed to shoot at a 59.3 percent clip in the second.
An 18-6 run to start the half separated the teams for good, with a fast-break bucket by Nick Sanchez giving the Marauders a 46-28 lead that was never seriously threatened.
Antelope Valley had four players finish in double figures, led by Rod Singleton's 20 points. Kyslean Reed added 15 points, 14 rebounds and five blocks.
SBVC got 17 points and nine rebounds from Maurice McGee. Warren Fuselier and Nathan Roth chipped in with 13 each, with Fuselier also credited with adding five assists.
SBVC also was outrebounded 48-33.
"They were organized, more disciplined and they just outplayed and outhustled us. There is no other way to put it," Brewer said. "Give them credit."
SBVC will look to get back on track on Wednesday at Rio Hondo.
basketball team started a gauntlet of four straight games against
state-ranked Foothill Conference foes, the first being local rival
Chaffey.
The Wolverines got that off to a good start, turning back the
No. 12 Panthers 83-71 Wednesday at Snyder Gymnasium to remain tied
for first in the conference with Antelope Valley, their opponent on
Saturday.
``You have to get the ones at home so this was important,'' SBVC
coach Sue Crebbin said. ``We tend to play well here so it was all
about defending home court because this conference is so tough.''
SBVC (13-8, 4-0) led most of the game with Chaffey's only leads
being 2-0 and 12-9.
The Wolverines led 38-31 at the half and upped that advantage to
12 points twice in the second half. Each time the Panthers made a
run, the Wolverines answered. The visitors used an 8-0 run to get in
striking distance at 45-41 with13:16 to go.
But Kimberly Kipp hit a 3-pointer from the corner to stop the run.
SBVC ended up getting the lead back to 11 at 54-43.
The Panthers (16-6, 3-2) inched closer again with a pair of free
throws by Aundria Anderson cutting the deficit to 55-50 with 8:31 to
play. Again the host team answered. This time it was Ashleigh Frazier
with her fourth 3-pointer of the game.
Then when Chaffey got it back to five again at 58-53, SBVC
answered with a bucket inside by Kipp, then a 3-pointer by Keyanna
Stewart, making it 63-53. The closest Chaffey ever got after that was
eight points.
``They made a few runs on us and we did a good job of not getting
too rattled,'' Crebbin said. ``That's one thing about this team. They
tend to just keep playing.''
The second half was a sloppy one. SBVC had 14 turnovers, after
only committing three in the first half. The Wolverines hit only 15
of 28 free throws in the half after making 13 of 15 in the first half
although they did hit seven of eight in the last minute. Three SBVC
starters fouled out.
Frazier tallied a game-high 21 to lead all scores. She also
collected six rebounds and four assists. Point guard Eisha Sheppard
added 20 with Kipp contributing 14 and six rebounds as SBVC shot 45.1
percent (23-for-51).
Chaffey, which shot 41.5 percent (22-of-53) for the game, was
led by Anderson with 17 points and nine rebounds.
was a controversial call that made the difference as San Bernardino
Valley College emerged with an 81-78 win over the Panthers in
Foothill Conference play Wednesday.
The contest was even at 78-all with 15 seconds to play in
overtime and the Wolverines with the ball. Nate Roth dribbled down
the lane and lofted up a runner that went in and appeared to give the
Wolverines the win. Not so fast.
The referees called a foul and appeared to be waving off the
basket. After the three officials huddled they ruled the basket good,
with the foul not being a charging on Roth but a loose ball foul.
SBVC had the lead 80-78 and the basket was good but Chaffey's Winston
Robinson was at the line at the other end to try and tie the game.
Neither coach liked the call. SBVC's Quincy Brewer thought a
blocking foul should have been called.
``It was blocking foul, if anything,'' he said. ``But there were a
plethora of calls on both ends. That was just one of them.''
Chaffey coach Jeff Klein was understandably more disturbed.
``That was really terrible,'' he said. ``There was the same call
earlier in the game and it went against us. It's a sad day when the
referees take the game away from the kids.''
Robinson missed both his free throws and SBVC's Curtis Wilkinson
snagged the rebound, only to be immediately fouled with a second
left. He missed the first but made the second, giving the Wolverines
an 81-78 lead. But it still wasn't over.
Turner inbounded the ball and unleashed a long throw that was
grabbed by Lamar Williams right at the 3-point arc. His shot which
would have tied the game and resulted in double overtime was just off
the rim as time expired.
The dramatic finish was only fitting. SBVC (17-6, 4-0) led by 21
in both halves, up 50-29 three minutes in. The Panthers (18-5, 2-2)
chipped away slowly and eventually took their first lead since 4-0
when Robinson connected on a 3-pointer that gave Chaffey a 69-67 lead
with 44 seconds left in regulation.
Roth evened the game with a pair of free throws with 37 seconds
to go.
Chaffey missed two chances at the game winner on its end, the
second tip by Turner off the rim and grabbed by SBVC's Orlando
Brazier.
SBVC was led by Roth with 22 points. Warren Fuselier was next
with 19.
``I was disappointed we almost let it slip away,'' Brewer said.
``We have to learn to close out games.''
Chaffey was paced by Robinson with 22, including three 3-pointers.
Turner added 20 and Trone Jackson 11.
``I was proud of the way we fought and came back,'' Klein said.
``They're a talented team.''
SBVC will host Antelope Valley at 3 p.m. Saturday while Chaffey
travels to Barstow for a 7 p.m. contest.
Staff Writer
Last year the race for the men's basketball title in the Foothill Conference was so close four teams went into the final game tied for first place and three ended up even at the end. Conference play starts today and most expect it to be that close - again.
Chaffey (16-2), which has won 10 straight games, opens play at Rio Hondo (6-11) at 1 p.m. SBVC (13-6) will hit the road and travel to Bartsow (0-12) at 7 p.m. while Victor Valley (12-6) will host Mt. San Jacinto (10-7) at 3 p.m.
``This is as competitive as it has been in my eight years. It's probably the deepest conference in the state,'' Chaffey coach Jeff Klein said. ``There are six teams with a legitimate shot at it and maybe another two that could be spoilers. There are going to be a lot of good games.''
Mt. San Jacinto, Antelope Valley and College of the Desert were the parties involved in that
tie although Mt. San Jacinto got the highest seed for playoff purposes.
But Chaffey has already made a statement with its win streak. The Panthers are coming off a
championship at an eight-team event hosted by College of the Canyons in which sophomore Winston Robinson was named most valuable player.
The Panthers have a good mix of veterans and promising newcomers and have played the seventh-toughest schedule in the state. They have a lot of depth with four players averaging
double figures and 11 that have scored in double figures already this season.
``I like this team because I think we have good balance,'' Klein said. ``We have a lot of
weapons and it's just a matter of who has the hot hand on that night. I also like the team
chemistry we have. We have had talented teams in the past where we didn't have that.''
San Bernardino Valley College comes in with an enthusiastic coach and a roster comprised of 12 freshman and one sophomore who is also new to the program. The Wolverines also have depth with six players having been named to all-tournament teams this season.
The biggest concern for coach Quincy Brewer is his team's failure to close out games. It blew an 18-point lead in a loss to Riverside in the final of the Imperial Valley Holiday Classic. That
has been an all too familiar trend. But the new coach remains positive.
``We have played in six tournaments and been in the final of four. So we're doing
something right,'' he said. ``We just have some lapses. We need to learn to stay focused for 40 minutes and I have spent the last 72 hours thinking about how to fix that. And it will be
fixed.''
Then there's Victor Valley, which may has already equaled its win total of last year and might have the best individual player in the conference in Dwight Gordon.
As far as out of the area teams go, both Klein and Brewer single out Mt. San Jacinto and Antelope Valley as key factors.
``A lot of people are down on Antelope but they have played a very tough schedule,'' Brewer
said. ``That's the team we all have to keep an eye on.''
On the women's side the competition is expected to be equally as tough. Four teams are ranked in the state's top 15 with Rio Hondo at No. 6, Antelope Valley at No. 8, Chaffey at No. 11 and Mt. San Jacinto at No. 14.
Defending champion SBVC is in the receiving votes category and has played the 15th toughest schedule in the state with two of its losses coming to the top teams
in the North and South respectively. The other four Foothill frontrunners are also in the
top of the pack in strength of schedule.
``Everyone talks about the Orange Empire Conference,'' SBVC coach Sue Crebbin said. ``This year I think we have the toughest conference in the South and maybe even the state. It's loaded.''
