Sweet 16 is sweet for highly ranked CCSF hoop squads
Updated Brackets
Men: NorCal | SoCal
Women: NorCal | SoCal
SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. - The City College of San Francisco Men’s and Women’s Basketball teams are one step closer to advancing to the California Community College Athletic Association State Championship round. A sweet-16 round win for both teams this Saturday would mark consecutive years that both CCSF teams advanced to the championship round.
No.1 CCSF men’s basketball team (27-2) advanced to the CCCAA Sweet 16 after narrowly defeating no.17 Cabrillo College 65-61 (19-8). The Rams were led by Coast-North Conference MVP Zachary Copeland, who scored a game-high 27 points and hit key free throws to close out the game for the Rams. Guard Eddie Stansberry was second on the team in scoring with 12 points. Freshman guard Adrian Rico, who came off the bench, played the role of spark plug for the Rams.
The Rams sweet-16 opponent will be no.9 Butte College (20-9). Butte is coming off a 78-63 win over no.8 Sacramento City College (18-11). The Roadrunners were led by Josiah Wood, who scored a game-high 22 points and grabbed eight rebounds. They also received significant contributions from a bench that outscored Sacramento’s bench 29-23. Carlos Costa scored 11 points off of the bench.
Saturday’s game between the Rams and Roadrunners will be a matchup between the Rams high-powered offense and Butte’s lockdown defense. The Rams are ranked no.5 in the state in points per game with an average of 85.9 points. The Roadrunners are the no.1 defensive team in the state, allowing a miniscule 56.6 points per game.
No.3 CCSF women’s basketball team (26-3) continued their run of blowouts by thoroughly beating no.14 Laney College (17-11) 73-53. The Rams received contributions from up and down its roster. Coast-North MVP Gabrielle Vigil and all-conference selection Destiny Kelly tied for the team high in points with 18 apiece. Sophomore forward Nahrie Pierce, the queen of double-doubles, scored 12 points and pulled down 20 rebounds. Backup guard Caprice Taylor was the leading scorer off the bench. She scored 12 points and dished out six assists.
The Lady Rams will face no.6 Diablo Valley College (25-6), who are fresh off a 109-87 win over no.11 Mission College (19-11). The Viking were led by Doris Jones and Safiyyah Yasin. Jones scored a game-high 36 points, grabbed 10 rebounds, and dished out seven assists. Yasin also compiled an impressive stat line of 29 points, eight assists, and seven rebounds.
The Rams and Vikings previously met in December at the San Jose City College Tournament. The Viking defeated the Rams 97-86. In that game, Gabrielle Vigil led the Rams with 33 points while Safiyyah Yasin led the Viking with 28 points.
Saturday’s game will be a battle between two of the best offensive teams in the state. CCSF’s per game
(Courtesy Marcus Tolero, CCSF Sports Information)
(Photo by Eric Sun)