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| left to right: Coach Briski, See, Fearn, Cobb, Sulker-Hall, Knudsen, Palmer, Pinson, Scott, Glapion, Overton, Young, Watkins, and Perdomo |
PASADENA, Calif. -- As the second annual SoCal Senior Showcase got under way on April 26, Caltech's Braun Gym was filled with some of the top small college players in the state. Hailing from nine different colleges, the Division II and III seniors, representing the CCAA and the SCIAC, were happy to put on their uniforms again -- and square off against one another.
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| The second annual SoCal Senior Showcase |
Erik Fearn (San Francisco State) nailed a 3 from the top of the key, Watkins scored 2 more points in transition and it looked as if the DIIs would run away. Not to be outdone, the DIIIs -- sparked by Young -- came right back and took the lead on a trifecta by Michael Palmer (Cal Lutheran), 9-7.
The DIIs took the lead on consecutive jumpers before Cal Lu's Collin Knudsen drained a 3 to put the DIIIs back on top, 12-11. SF State's Nefi Perdomo hit a 3 but Cobb equaled the feat with another trey for the DIIIs, who led 15-14 with 4:10 remaining.
Then Perdomo took over. He hit back-to-back 3s and got a steal and layin. Deronn Scott (Cal Poly Pomona) converted an and-1 and the DIIs grabbed a double digit lead, 25-15.
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| A good turnout in Caltech's Braun Gym |
The DIIs stepped up their defense and running game and took control of the game midway through the second quarter (44-25). After a DIII timeout, the SCIAC players trimmed the lead to 54-42 at halftime.
With under 7 minutes in the third, the DIIIs found a rhythm. Ronn See (La Verne) and Jeremy Sulker-Hall (Cal Lu) scored, and then, in an exciting span, Knudsen drew an offensive foul sandwiched between consecutive 3-pointers to pull the DIIIs to within 3 points, 61-58. They got even closer when Young hit Sulker-Hall for a layup to make it 67-65, and again when Sulker-Hall made a fadeaway jumper, 69-67.
But that was it.
The DIIs came out in the fourth with renewed purpose. Watkins swatted a drive, Fearn pinned a layup, and the DIIs opened up a 84-73 lead that forced another DIII timeout. After that, the DIIs kept on going and eventually put the game out of reach. With a final score of 112-85, the teams shattered the scoring mark from the inaugural showcase in 2013.
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| Coach Briski and Perdomo give the thumbs up |
For the DIIIs, Young and Sulker-Hall scored 20 each. Knudsen and Cobb chipped in with 17 and 15 points, respectively. See added 8 points and 4 assists and Palmer and Glapion combined for 5 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 assists.
