Fresno City's second-half roll pushes aside COS men

BY ANTHONY GALAVIZ, The Fresno Bee

Dejon Burdeuax did not score all of Fresno City College's points in the second half, it only seemed that way for a while Wednesday.

From a layup to an off-balance jumper, it was that kind of night for the sophomore guard from San Leandro.

Burdeaux picked up 11 of his game-high 18 points in the second half, propelling the state top-ranked Rams to a 60-40 victory over College of the Sequoias in a Central Valley Conference game.

"Be the ultimate aggressor," Burdeaux said. "Whenever I get in, coach tells me to be aggressive. Every time I get in I try to do my job and be aggressive."

The Rams (23-3, 7-0), holding a 24-21 halftime lead, went on a 6-0 run out of the break thanks to 3-pointers by Anthony Ballestero and Nick Hilton.

Chris Ross countered with two for the Giants, but Fresno City built its lead to 37-23 with a 7-0 run, the final five by Burdeaux.

"Dejon Burdeaux," Rams coach Ed Madec said. "Him and James O'Neal … best guards in the state. (Burdeaux) hasn't scratched the surface."

Defensive intensity picked up in the second half for Fresno City, as the Rams limited the Giants to 19 points.

"Dejon is our best defender," Madec said. "We just have high expectations for him and we know how good he is. I believe in him and what separates him is his competitiveness."

The pace of the game was vastly different than when the teams met in the first round of CVC play, with the Rams topping COS 97-72 in January.

"Ugly game," Madec said. "Sluggish, but I thought our defense was pretty good."

COS (12-12, 5-3) was led by Brantley Bynum's 14 points. He was limited to four points in the second half.

"It's always team defense," Burdeaux said. "It's always defense first, then take great shots on offense."