Chaffey College to host men’s basketball tournament

CHAFFEY MEN'S BASKETBALL TEAM WINS CONSOLATION CHAMPIONSHIP WITH AN 80-76 WIN OVER SAN DIEGO MESA. IMPROVE SEASON RECORD TO 8-2.

Chaffey College will host an eight-team men’s basketball tournament starting Friday. The Panthers (11-5) open up at 1 p.m. against Long Beach City (3-10) in the first of four games at the college’s sports center.

Citrus (13-3) will play Compton (13-3) at 7 p.m., the final game.
The field also includes College of the Desert (3-11), Glendale (8-6), Pasadena (5-10) and Palomar (7-7).

Panthers coach Jeff Klein said he started the event out of need. In the past the Panthers had started Foothill Conference play right after the new year. But with that conference disbanding and teams scattered in difference conferences, most now don’t start play until the middle of the month. That left a two week void when teams least need it.

“It really came out of need,” said Klein, also the school’s athletic director. “When we saw the schedule in the spring we saw that gap there . When we decided to do this it came together pretty quickly because there were a lot of schools in the same boat.”
Klein is hoping the home event helps his team get is energy back. The Panther won

six of their first seven gamed, the highlight in that stretch a win over then-No. 1 Saddleback on Nov. 19. It is just 5-4 since then.

He admits maybe his players got a little too high on themselves and also said the target on his team anyway after reaching the state semifinals in three of the last four years.

“We came back from Thanksgiving and haven’t been the same,” he said. “Hopefully having some home games and playing in this we can get back to where we were in November. I still think we have good potential.”

Sophomore point guard Brian Beard, a product of Rancho Cucamonga, is the team’s leading scorer (15.3 ppg). Sophomore guard Kameron Curl is also in double figures (14.3 ppg).

The Citrus squad boasts several local players, most notably freshman forwards Khlail Williams (Los Osos) and Kyle Gray (Bonita) and sophomore guard K.C. Cyprian (Chino Hills). Cyprian is the team’s second-leading scorer (11.1 ppg) with Williams also in double figures (10.6 ppg) with sophomore Tyler LaCour (Etiwanda) close (9.9 ppg).

The semifinals are at noon and 4 on Saturday with consolation games with a consolation games at 2 and 6. The final will be Sunday at 4 with third place game at 2.

Share this

Plusone Twitter Facebook Tumblr Reddit Stumbleupon Email

Citrus advances to semifinal

The Citrus College men’s basketball team advanced to the semi-finals of the 2007 Wells Fargo Holiday Classic hosted by Riverside City College with a 85-52 win over Long Beach City College in the quarterfinals

Sophomore Buchi Awaji was 6 of 10 from the field as he scored a game high 14 points, while Ralph Monday ripped down a game high 10 rebounds.

Long Beach kept pace with Citrus in the first half as they trailed by just 5-points going into half-time 30-35, but in the second half the Fighting Owls blew LBCC out of the water as they outscored them 51-25.

With the win Citrus improves to 12-0, and earns the right to play Antelope Valley College tomorrow night at 5:00 p.m.

Share this

Plusone Twitter Facebook Tumblr Reddit Stumbleupon Email

Citrus advances in RCC Tournament

Six players finished in double figures as the Citrus College mens basketball team stayed unbeaten and advanced in the Wells Fargo Holiday Classic, beating College of the Desert 105-82 Wednesday in first round play.

The Owls (11-0), ranked seventh in the state and fourth in Southern California, play Long Beach City today at 1 p.m. Long Beach advanced with a 57-47 win earlier in the day over Saddleback.

Freshman guard A.J. Gasporra led the Citrus effort with 16 points while sophomore guard Buchi Awaji added 15 and sophomore forwward Richard Frolich 12.

Ayala graduate Darren Moore, Ralph Monday and Virgil Buensuceso each chipped in with 11 with Monday also grabbing eight rebounds and Buensuceso dishing out six assists and getting three steals.

Citrus shot 57.7 percent (41-for-71) while holding Desert, out of the Foothill Conference, to 42.9 percent (33-for-77).
In a consolation bracket game today at 2 p.m.

In other games Wednesday San Diego City beat Los Angeles Pierce 64-59 and Long Beach slipped past Saddleback 57-47.

In today’s consolation bracket game San Bernardino Valley College (1-7) will face the Riverside All-Stars. The Wolverines lost their first round game to East Los Angeles on Tuesday 89-77.

Share this

Plusone Twitter Facebook Tumblr Reddit Stumbleupon Email