COS basketball advances to NorCal regional finals

College of the Sequoias men's basketball standouts Terri Miller and Javohn Garcia proved again why they were selected the co-Most Valuable Players of the Central Valley Conference and are likely soon to receive All-State honors.

Miller and Garcia combined for 39 points, 17 rebounds, seven assists, four steals, and three blocks while leading the third-seeded Giants to a 90-57 victory over No. 19 San Mateo on Feb. 25 at Porter Field House in the second round of the Northern California Regional playoffs.

Sequoias advances to host No. 6 Redwoods in one of four NorCal Regional finals at 7:30 p.m. March 4 in the nightcap of a doubleheader with the college's women's team. Admission into Porter Field House, as set by the California Community College Athletic Association, is $12 general and $8 for identified students, faculty and staff, seniors over 60, and children younger than 12.

The winner moves to the California Community College Athletic Association's State Final Eight tournament, scheduled for March 9 and 11-12 at West Hills College-Lemoore's Golden Eagle Arena.

"I always feel like if we do our job for 40 minutes, at some point, we should get going a little bit. And I thought that happened tonight," Giants coach Dallas Jensen said. "I thought Terri Miller was just dominant on the interior, on both ends. I thought he rebounded it. He scored it. He had great pace and tempo. I thought JG got rolling there in the second half. And all of our guys just contributed across the board. When we have the ability to play inside out and really value possession and make teams work, we're really hard to beat."

For a team that has beaten its opponents by an average margin of 22.7 points while winning 21 consecutive games − tied with Fullerton for the longest active streak in the state, Sequoias got off to a relatively sluggish start against San Mateo (14-16).

The Bulldogs led 15-13 with 14 minutes and 2 seconds remaining in the first half following a jumper by Kiahn Nice.

But with Miller (Clovis North High) delivering four points, six rebounds, three assists, and a block; and Garcia (Columbus, Ohio) contributing four points, the Giants closed the first half on a 31-13 run that allowed them to take a 16-point lead into the locker room. Tyjean Burrell (Sacramento) added nine points to the run.

"We just had to keep playing our brand of basketball," Miller said. "Like coach (Jensen) said before the game, just play our way, and no one can beat us. And that's what we did."

Sequoias was never seriously threatened in the second half, with its lead expanding to its largest margin at 35 points (87-52) on a Tre'von Martin (Las Vegas) dunk with 1:38 left in the game.

Miller and Garcia each scored 10 points in the second half as the Giants pulled away.

"The first half was maybe a lot of playoff jitters early on, and I thought there were a lot of whistles early on, both ways. And that makes it hard to get in any kind of rhythm," Jensen said. "But I also thought the refs did a great job of establishing what they were looking for. And the other thing is I thought San Mateo came out extremely well prepared. Coach (Mike) Marcial does an incredible job. I thought they had a game plan early, and they executed it and made shots, and defended it. I just thought as the game went along, we stayed true to who we are and our identity, and some of our skill and talent took over as the game went along."

Miller delivered 20 points, 15 rebounds, six assists and a block, while Garcia finished with 19 points, four steals, two rebounds, two blocks, and an assist.

The Giants' starting five also saw Burrell contribute 10 points, three rebounds, three assists, and a steal; Jose Cuello (Harlem, N.Y.) with 11 points, five rebounds, four assists, and two steals; and Cameron Clark (Snellville, Ga.) with six points and five rebounds.

Sequoias' bench also delivered in a big way, getting significant contributions from its second five, led by six points, three rebounds, and a block from Samuel Bazunga (Paris, France).

"Tonight was the best he's played all year, the minutes he gave us," Jensen said. "He was physical. He defended it well. He attacked the cup big rebounds. I was really, really proud of him because he's got all the tools to do it and the physical makeup. It's really just a matter for him to play aggressive and assertive and rely on some of those athletic abilities."

The Giants also received seven points, two rebounds, an assist, and a steal from Tyree Gill (Sacramento); five points and two rebounds from Martin; three points, two rebounds, and a block from Alex Argandar (Modesto); and three points two rebounds, two assists and a steal from Omari Nesbit (Sacramento).

"It just seems like over the last 10 to 14 days, we're seeing positive strides," Jensen said of his second unit. "Because a lot of them are freshmen, and all of a sudden, things are starting to click, and they are starting to understand those habits they have in practice transition into games. Now, they are working every single day, and it's making our team that much better."

Up next for Sequoias is Golden Valley Conference champion Redwoods (26-3), which opened the postseason on Feb. 25 by defeating No. 11 Cosumnes River 76-66 for its eighth straight win.

The then third-seeded Giants beat the No. 14 Corsairs 88-64 at Porter Field House last season in the second round of the NorCal Regionals.

"(Redwoods) coach (Ryan) Bisio is one of the best coaches in the state. I really believe that" Jensen said. "I know they are a little isolated up in Eureka, but he does an amazing job. They are always well-prepared. They are true to who they ate. They don't beat themselves. There is a reason they are 26-3. They are very smart. They have a big in the middle who is averaging like 17 points and 17 rebounds and shooters all over the perimeter. So, they will be very good. They will be very well prepared. We just need to make sure we have a good week of practice and try to put ourselves in position to be as successful as possible next week."

The Giants are out to reach the state's Final Eight for the fourth straight championship season and the fifth time since 2016.

Sequoias reached the state semifinals last season before losing 71-65 to eventual champion San Francisco.

The Giants haven't won a state men's basketball title since 1982. Sequoias also won state in 1953.

"I think we have a good chance to win it," Miller said. "I think we have the biggest chance, honestly, out of everybody to win the championship this year. Because I have confidence in my team. I believe in them that much."

Camila Barreno delivers for women's basketball team

When College of the Sequoias' women's basketball team needed it most, Camila Barreno delivered.

The sophomore from Ambato, Ecuador, scored 14 of her team's 24 points in the fourth quarter to help the third-seeded Giants pull away from No. 19 San Mateo for a 73-54 victory in the second round of the Northern California Regional playoffs on Feb. 25 at Porter Field House. It was Sequoias' 13th straight win.

The Giants (27-2) move on to one of four NorCal Regional finals, where they will host No. 6 San Francisco (24-4) at 5:30 p.m. March 4 in the first game of a doubleheader with Sequoias' men's team. The winner advances to the California Community College Athletic Association's State Final Eight tournament set for March 10-12 at West Hills College-Lemoore's Golden Eagle Arena.

Admission into Porter Field House, as set by the CCCAA, is $12 general and $8 for identified students, faculty and staff, seniors over 60, and children younger than 12. Doors open an hour before tip-off.

"It's a cliche, but survive and advance," Sequoias coach Ray Alvarado said. "We knew they were going to be a tough game because they played San Francisco well (a 60-52 loss on Feb. 10). When you have a team with nothing to lose, you know, and they got that bonus win on the road (a 36-33 upset of No. 14 Shasta in the first round), we knew it was going to be tough. I was proud of our team. We handled their zone (defense) a little after a while and hit some big shots. (Barreno) played really well. So hopefully, we can just keep moving on."

Barreno sank all five of her shots during the fourth quarter, including four 3-pointers, and dished out three assists as Sequoias broke open a score that had been close through two and a half quarters.

San Mateo (19-10) was within three points at 40-37 with 7 minutes and 30 seconds left in the third quarter.

"We figured, hey, let's keep pushing, keep pushing cause we're going to wear them out," Alvarado said. "That's been our thing. We've got some fighters on this team, and they hit some clutch shots. It seemed like everyone contributed to some degree, which is great for a playoff run. I'm very proud of how resilient they fought through."

The Giants led 49-39 when Barreno took control of the fourth quarter.

Barreno made four 3-pointers and contributed two assists during a 19-8 fourth quarter-opening run that saw Sequoias expand a 10-point lead into a 21-point cushion at 68-47 with 2 minutes and 51 seconds left in the game. She had another basket, and an assist as the Giants' lead grew to its largest margin at 25 points (73-48) with 1:47 remaining.

Barreno finished with a game-co-leading 17 points, five rebounds, four assists, and a steal.

"I just wanted to win. I love this team, and I just wanted to keep going and get to state," Barreno said. "I couldn't have done it without the help of my teammates. They did what they needed to do, and I had the chance to shoot the three's and make them."

Maria Dias (Lisbon, Portugal) also scored 17 points for the Giants, adding eight rebounds, six assists, two blocks, and two steals.

Sequoias received a dominant performance from Central Valley Conference Most Valuable Player Alana Roberts (Sierra Pacific-Hanford), who finished with 14 points, 11 rebounds, six steals, two blocks, and an assist.

Also contributing for the Giants were Tiana Holland (Washington Union-Easton) with nine points, three rebounds, and an assist; Geizzle Jones (Bullard-Fresno) with seven points, four assists, two rebounds, two blocks, and two steals; Taylor Roth (Sanger) with six points and five rebounds; Hannah Kearnan (Redwood) with two points, two rebounds, and an assist; Noura Aboutaleb (Charlotte, N.C.) with one points, two rebounds, an assist, and a steal; and Maci Chavez (Kingsburg) with an assist.

"It was a tough game," Barreno said. "We weren't doing a real good job in the first half, but we pushed through. We always work as a team, and I think that's what got us the win.

"We have really good chemistry and I think that is what is going to get us to the state championship."

Standing between Sequoias and a sixth trip to the state Final Eight in the past nine championship seasons is a San Francisco team that ran its winning streak to 16 straight with an 84-57 victory over No. 22 Lassen on Feb. 25. The Giants and Rams did not meet during the regular season, but then sixth-seeded Sequoias upset No. 3 San Francisco 88-73 on the road during the NorCal Regional finals last season en route to a state semifinals finish.

"They are good. Real good," Alvarado said of San Francisco, which was the champion of the Coast-North Conference. "It will be a tough matchup. But we're home, and hopefully, we can do what we did last year, except win at home rather than having to do it on the road."

The Giants captured the only state championship in program history in 1987.

This article originally appeared on Visalia Times-Delta: COS basketball advances to NorCal regional finals