3C2A Men's Basketball Quarterfinal #3: College of the Sequoias outlasts West L.A. to advance to semis
Men's Basketball Tournament Central
WALNUT - In a frenzied second half between No. 2 North seed College of the Sequoias and No. 3 South seed West Los Angeles College, it came down to the last minute for the outcome to be decided.
A big layup with 1:58 by COS sophomore guard Jose Cuello gave the Giants a lead they wouldn’t relinquish and as they went on to a, 73-71, 3C2A State Quarterfinal win over the Wildcats Friday night at Mt. San Antonio College.
With the win, COS improved to 26-5, while West L.A. finishes at 26-5. The Giants advance to Saturday's semifinal at 7 p.m. against the winner of Friday's last quarterfinal game between Cabrillo and Fullerton.
Cuello scored six of the final eight points for COS, which included four free throws down the stretch.
“I’m just so happy for our guys,” COS coach Dallas Jensen said. “This is a team that’s really connected.
“Both teams leaned on their strengths and the game of basketball is a game of runs and you saw that amplified for 40 minutes and we were fortunate to basically have the last run of the game.”
It wasn’t a big run, but the Giants outscored West L.A. when it counted in the last two minutes.
In the first half, neither team led by more than six points with no one in double figures in scoring in the first half as Sequoias held a 34-33 halftime lead.
Isaiah Daniel led West L.A. with nine points at the half, while SoCal Player of the Year CJ Hardy added seven.
In the second half, with West L.A. leading, 51-43, COS went on a 13-2 run to take a 56-53 lead on a slam dunk by freshman guard Davis White just under the midway mark.
The Wildcats only took the lead once, 66-65, on a layup by freshman forward Chiduern Akametu, but couldn’t regain the lead for the remainder of the game because of the hot shooting by COS.
However, West L.A. closed to within three points, 61-58, on a 3-pointer by sophomore guard Blake Lander with 4:50 left.
Hardy brought the Wildcats within a point, 69-68, with 20 seconds left after a driving layup and a free throw.
The teams traded free throws after that and Hardy tossed in a short jump shot with one second left and COS inbounded the ball as time expired.
Hardy and teammate Blake Lander scored 17 points each for West LA.
Four players were in double figures for COS, with sophomore guard Omari Nesbit and Cuello scoring 14 points each. Jaylon Lee and Alex Argandar added 12 and 11 points, respectively for the Giants.
“It’s the state playoffs and you got to live for the moment,” Argandar said. “We’re a tight group and we had a terrible start to the season, and we just came together at the end.”
(Release by John Sherrard, for the 3C2A)
