In the second round of playoffs, the San Jose City Jaguars faced the Mustangs of Delta College March 7th, 2009. A victory for the Jags would punch their ticket to the big dance in Fresno, California.

The Jaguars came out in the first half with power and dominance over the Delta, allowing zero tres, a shot that the Mustangs rely heavily upon. Neel Narayan left the first half with 10 points, followed by sophmore Quinston Reggins with 9 points. At the end of the first half, the Jaguars had a 31-28 lead over Delta College.

In the beggining of the second half, the Jaguars continued their aggressive play and seemed to pull away from the Mustangs, extending their lead to 10 points with 15 min left of play. But a couple tres by Delta, put them back into the game. With 10 min left in the second half, the Jaguar's leading scorer, Quinston Reggins, fouled out of the game and in seemed that that a shift in power had occured. The Delta Mustangs picked away at the Jaguars lead until took the lead and a heartbreaking 54-50 victory over San Jose City.

Despite the loss and the end to a great season, Neel Narayan lead the team with 18 points, followed by Quinston Reggins and Chris Randel who finished with 9 points apiece.

The Jaguars finished the season with a conference record of 11-1 and an overall record of 25-9.

Recorded by Coach Dustin Coleman

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The Jaguars first round playoff match was held Febuary 27th, 2004. Their opponent was Butte College, a ten seed that hails from Chico California. Butte is lead by Devon Hills, who averages 14 points a game.

The Jaguars lead Butte 37-30 in the first half, with Neel Narayan leading the Jags with 12 points, followed by Isaiah James with 10 points.

San Jose City continued their aggressive play in the secong half, never giving Butte to pull ahead throughout the whole game. The final score was 86-76 in favor of the Jaguars. Neel Narayan lead the team with 21 points and 10 assists, followed by Isaiah James with 20 points and 9 rebounds. Also helping the Jags was Quinston Reggins with 17 points and Brandon Criss with 11 points.

As they claimed victory, they also continue on the road to the State Finals in Fresno, California. Thier next match will be March 7th against Delta College in Stockton California.

Recorded by Coach Dustin Coleman

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Congratulations to the following San Jose City Jaguars who were honored for their accomplishments this season.

#50 Isaiah James- South Coast Conference Co-MVP

#14 Quinston Reggins- First Team All American

#42 Chris Randel- Second Team All American

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In a game that decided the seeding of the Jaguars in the upcoming playoffs, San Jose City fell short in their game against Ohlone Collegen (56-39).

The Jaguars played well in the first half, leading the Renegades by one at halftime (26-25), but at the start of the second half, the Jaguars crumbled. The Jaguars only scored 13 points in the second half. They were lead by Isaiah James finished with 13 points and 5 boards. Quinston Reggins finished with 11 points.

San Jose City's playoff opponent and playoff date will be added shortly.

The Jaguars are scheduled to play #10 seed Butte on Friday, Febuary 25th 2009 at 7pm.

Recorded by Coach Dustin College

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On February 13th 2009, Percy Carr and the San Jose City Jaguars earned their tenth South Coast Conference Championship with an impressive win over the DeAnza Dons (93-71). Neel Narayan lead the Jaguars in scoring with 20 points and 11 assists. Quinston Reggins was second, finishing with 17 points. Big men Isaiah James and Chris Randel controlled the paint and made the deciding factor between a blowout and a nail biter. Isaiah finished with 15 points and 10 rebounds, and Randel finished with 14 points, 9 boards, and 7 steals. Brandon Criss played another outstanding game, contributing 11 points and five boards. The Jaguars face the Harnell Panthers in their last league game on Wednesday Febraury 18th.

Recorded by Coach Dustin Coleman

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For the first time this year, the Jaguars were in top form from start to finish in their game against Gavilan, Febuary 11th 2009. The Jaguars traveled to Gavilan College, coming off of a big win against West Valley, with a no nonsense attitude with a South Coast Conference Championship on the line. The Gavilan Rams, who despite having a rough season, beat West Valley (73-68) on the road. Ultimately, the Jaguars and their coaching staff realized this was not a game to be taken lightly.

The Jaguars dominated the game throughout, forcing 24 total turnovers and keeping the Rams to only 25 points in the first half.

Quinston Reggins lead the Jaguars with 19 points, followed close behind by Chris Randel, who contributed 16 points and Isaiah James who finished with 14 points. Freshman point guard, Neel Narayan, played outstanting offense and defense, finishing with 10 points, 11 assists, and 5 steals.

Even the bench helped the Jaguars to victory, as Derek Jenson played solid defense and finished with 2 points, and freshman Billy Dick finished with 3 points and 2 boards.

The San Jose City Jaguars swept the Rams with a 90-62 victory and became one game close to being the South Coast Conferense Champions. They will face the DeAnza Dons February 13th.

Recorded by Coach Dustin Coleman

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On February 7th 2009, the top two teams in the South Coast Conference faced off for the second time. After their first encounter, it was San Jose City that rallied a last minute victory over the West Valley Vikings (72-63). Now the Vikings met the Jaguars on their home turf to prove that their last meeting was simply an upset and a fluke.

But the Viking were mistaken as the Jaguars played a season best and all player seemed to have a top notch preformance. Despite Viking's Danny Nugent, who leads the team and finished the game with 20 points, the Jaguars control the tempo and the outcome of the entire game.

Neel Narayan and Quinston Reggins lead the team and finished with 15 points apiece. While big man, Isaiah James, was right behind with 14 points and a staggering game high 17 rebounds. Also supporting the Jaguars was Brandon Criss who finished with 8 points and Derek Watson, who started his first game this season, proved to be a force on defense and on the offensive and defensive boards.

The final score of the game was 65-54, and San Jose City continues their impressive season with only 4 games left until playoffs.

Recorded by Coach Dustin Coleman

Game Photos: http://www.sjcc.edu/JagSports/mens/basketball/photos/Action/SJCCmbVsWestValley020709album/index.htm

After a tough unexpected loss to Monterey Peninsula, the Jaguars were determined to battle back and prove that they were the top team in the South Coast Conference. The Jaguars traveled through the twists and turns of highway 17, to Aptos on Febuary 4th 2009. Their opponents were the Seahawks of Cabrillo, a physical, 3 point shooting team, who are currently third in the South Coast Conference with a record of 4-3 (league).

The Cabrillo Seahawks had a tough time converting tres when the game began. They went 8-28 fron tres land, with Tony Gallo leading the time with 4 tres balls. The game was tight throughout and when halftime was over, the game was tied 24-24.

The Jaguars played with intensity throughout, causing 18 total turnover for the Seahawks. Quinston Reggins lead the Jaguars with 14 points, including 3 tres. Chris Randel and Isaiah James finished the game with 9 points apiece.

With 20 seconds left on the clock, the Jaguars were up 57-55, with Cabrillo given one last change to win the game, but with a missed lay-up and a mad cramble to rebound the ball, it was Isaiah James who risked his already bruised body to bat the ball away. With that, the game finished with a Jaguar victory and one step closer to a South Coast Conference Championship.

Recorded by Coach Dustin Coleman

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San Jose City College recorded their first league season loss January 31st 2009 against the Monterey Peninsula Lobos. The Lobos, lead by Coach Blake Spiering, were 2-4 (league) going into the game against the Jaguars. Despite being plagued by the dismissal of several players (Monterey only claim 9 players on their roster), the Lobos simply outworked the Jaguars and claimed an upset victory.

Outstanding play from the Lobos was displayed from Jermaine Carter, who finished the game with 14 points, 10 rebounds, and 4 assists. Additionally, Denario Tatmon proved to be a dominating force. Tatmon finished with 22 points and 8 rebounds.

Despite the loss, Quinston Reggins and Isaiah James both played well, finishing with 17 points apiece. Paul Hester had a game high of 15 points, and Chris Randel and Neel Narayan recorded 9 points apiece. The final score of the game was 84-77.

Recorded by Coach Dustin Coleman

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On the 23rd of January 2009, the San Jose City Jaguars travelled to Salinas to match up against the Hartnell Panthers. For me, walking into Hartnell’s gymnasium brings back many memories of my childhood. Memories of shooting hundred of free throws after an epic battle between Percy Carr’s Jaguars and the Hartnell Panther’s former head coach Frank Carbajal, my stepfather. Those memories still remain in the gym’s hardwood, in the strings of the net, in Mac and Dan (Hartnell Basketball’s Loyal Assistants), and in the stands where I spent my youth.

Hartnell’s present head coach, Andy Vasher, who is in his fourth season at Hartnell, hosted the Jaguars, who are 5-0 in league, 18-6 overall. In the first half, the Jaguars took command of the game, dominating in rebounds and playing a fast Jaguar tempo. The Jaguars led 37-26 at the buzzer, signifying the end of the first half.

The second half was much like the first, with the Panthers unable to cut the lead down to more that 6 points. Quinston Reggins played an outstanding game, finishing with 24 points, including 4 tres. Another outstanding performance came from sophomore captain Brandon Criss, who despite numerous injuries, went 7 for 8 from the field and finished with 14 points and 6 rebounds.

The Jaguars rallied over the Panthers 76-68 and are now 6-0 in league.

Recorded by Coach Dustin Coleman

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Former Jaguar Marshawn Landrine(07-08) stepped onto the SJCC hardwood floor as a DeAnza Don for the first time this season on January 21st 2009. The 0-3(league) Dons have struggle this season secure a win, and matching up against the 4-0.

The entire first half began as a back and forth battle, each team matching each other point for point. It finished with the Jaguars up only a disappointed two points (47-45), and a enthralled DeAnza College who may just upset the undefeated Jaguars.

After the break, the Jags came out once again with newfound energy. Despite Marshawn Lanrine’s game high 21 points, he was matched by Quinston Reggin who was scoreless in the first half and then incredibly produced 21 points in the second. Other key scorers for the Jags were Neel Narayan with 18 points and 7 assists, Isaiah James with 17 points and 7 rebounds, Paul Hester with a game high of 13 points, and Chris Randel who finished with 12 points and 5 rebounds. The game's final score was 89-83.

San Jose City’s victory kept the team undefeated in South Coast Conference

Reported by Coach Dustin Coleman

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The San Jose City Jaguars hosted Gavilan College on January 17th 2009. What looked to be a clean cut victory for the 3-0(league) Jags, turned into a battle in first half. The Jaguars struggled shooting, only shooting 28% from the field and 0% from three. The 1-1 Rams only trailed by four at the half (26-30).

In the second half the Jaguars shut down the Rams, only allowing 21 points in the second half and solidifying a 66-47 victory. Isaiah James finshed as the Jags leading scorer with 21 points and 11 rebounds. Also helping the Jaguars were Paul Hester who finshed with 8 points, and Neel Narayan whi had a game high 12 assists and 6 points.

Recorded by Coach Dustin Coleman

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In the battle for 1st place in the South Coast Conference, San Jose City and West Valley College faced off on January 14th. The 15-9 Vikings, coached be former Sac State Assistant Scott Eitelgeorge, have been on a recent tear, beating Chabot (83-76) and Ohlone (79-68) in the preseason.

The Vikings hosted the San Jose City Jaguars, who had just come off of a tough win against Cabrillo (67-62) and traveled to Saratoga with a goal to not relinquish their undefeated conference record.

With a large crowd in the stands and tensions high, the 1st half started with a spell of tough defense by the Jaguars. They pressured West Valley, who gave up 12 turnovers and held their top player Danny Nugent (who averages 20 points a game) to 4 points at the end of the first. The Jaguars trailed by 3 (35-32) at the half, despite Neel Narayan's 10 points (18 total) and BJ Lassiters two clutch tres.

The Jaguars have a tendancy to be a second half team, and today was no exception> The Jaguars scored 37 points in the second half and forced West Valley to give up 20 total turnovers. Quinston Reggins led the Jaguars with 20 points, followed close behind be Neel Narayan scored a season high of 18 point. Also vital to the Jaguars were Isaiah James' 12 rebounds and 4 points and Chris Randel's 12 points and 5 boards.

The final score of the match was San Jose City 72, West Valley 63. With the victory, San Jose City College Stands alone in the South Coast Conference and remains undefeated (4-0).

Recorded by Coach Dustin Coleman

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Fighting for the top spot in the South Coast Conference, the San Jose City Jaguars hosted the Cabrillo Seahawks January 10th. Coming off of a win against Hartnell (77-73), the Seahawks are currently third in conference with a record of 10-10.

At the start of the match, the Jaguars looked hungry and active, denying Cabrillo's three point shot they rely heavily upon. But the Jaguars continued to have trouble with big man, #44 Peterson Benard, who scored 13 points in the first half alone (22 points total).

As the half progressed, the Jaguars stayed tough on defense, but were unable to capitalize on offense. Point guard, Neel Narayan led the Jaguars with 8 points in the first half (17 points total). Converting free throws also gave the Jaguars trouble, going 0-4 as the buzzer sounded and the first half over. At the half San Jose City trailed 20-32.

With the start of the second half, the Jaguars were ready to steal a victory away from Cabrillo. San Jose City owned the paint in the second half with Isaiah James (12 points) and Chris Randel (9 points) at the helm. Quinston Reggins (12 points) capitalized on free throws, going 6-6 from the line and BJ Lassiter shot the ball well, finishing with 9 points.

The Jaguars out worked the Cabrillo Seahawks to haul in a 67-62 victory and remaining 2-0 (conference), and the number one team in the South Coast.

Recorded by Coach Dustin Coleman

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On January 7th, the San Jose City Jaguars traveled to Monterey to face the Monterey Peninsula Lobos. In their first conference game, the 13-6 Jaguars were ready to defend their lead in the South Coast Conference. The match was played in Monterey's brand new gymnasium and Blake Spiering, head coach of the Lobos and past assistant to Percy Carr, was ready to host the Jaguars despite recently losing starter Austin Bracey.

In the first half the Jaguars played with confidence as sophmore Quinston Reggins lead the team with 13 points (25 points total), including 3 tres. The Jaguars controlled the tempo of the game, but continued to have trouble with #40, Denario Tatmon, who dominated the post and finished the game with 14 point and 7 rebounds. The Jaguars finished the first half with a 38 to 29 lead over the Lobos of Monterey.

Throughout the game, freshman point guard Neel Narayan did his part to lead the Jaguars and finished with 13 points and 6 assists. Additionally, captain Isaiah James dominated the offensive and defensive boards and finished the game with 14 rebounds and 6 points.

Other noteable players for San Jose City included Chris Randel, who despite multiple injuries in the past month, finished the game with 11 points and 6 rebounds, as well as BJ Lassiter (7 points) and captain Brandon Criss (4 points), who continues to be a positive and motivational character on the team.

The Jaguars will face the 10-10 Cabrillo Seahawks, who are currently 3rd in the South Coast Conference.

Recorded by Coach Dustin Coleman

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San Jose City- 73 Las Positas- 77 SJCC Record- 13-6

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This nail-biter win put the Jags at 13-5 for this season, with one pre-season contest left before league begins. Coast Conference-South teams are trailing the Jags in wins so far this season.

San Jose City has 12 conference games--short of the championship, they hope to compile enough wins to get a regional playoff berth February 25.

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San Jose was down by ten points early in the first half but caught up by intermission to trail by 1-point, 26-27

The win put the Jags in the tournament final against Consumnes River.

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Few people in the house knew much about Canadian college basketball as the Vancouver team took the floor at Evergreen College, which hosts the tourney while the Lady Jags host a women's tournament in the SJCC Main Gym.

City led the visitor for much of the game and a easy promotion to the semi-final game seemed assured. That is until the last 3 minutes, when Vancouver put their skates on and started pinging the ball from the outer ranges of the perimeter into the basket.

Henry Bui, a sophomore guard of Wellington High School, sunk two 3-pointers and a long jumper to put the Mariners within a come-from-behind win over San Jose, who led 30-18 after the first half of the game.

Coach Percy Carr, host of the tournament and with its first international team, faced an upset from a team short on training and new to the American-style game pace.

Vancouver mounted a 9-0 run against SJCC from the 3 minute to the 1 minute mark. They then bested the Jaguars 7-4 in the last minute.

A put-back by City's Isaiah Johnson and one of his characteristic head down, drive to the left of the paint charges by Quinston Reggins that resulted in two FT's gave City just enough air in the final 30 seconds to thwart the resurgent boys from B.C.

Team total points leader Reggins was 7 of 8 from the charity stripe.

Tim Harrison, who had the most playing time this season, bucketed 10 while B.J. Lassiter found the money for 9.

With the win San Jose City improves its record to 11-5 and meets Santa Rosa in the semi-final game tonight.

--report by Charles Heimler (for more, go to charlesheimler.blogspot.com)

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With the win over the team with the state's lowest RBI, San Jose City (10-5) regained a state coaches poll ranking at 20, slipping back into the ratings after posting a #7 after the first week of the season's first weekend. After explosive starts in their first three games, the Jags have been struggling with consistency and finding the groove early in the game.

A little more intensity and a few breaks at the right time in the second half have turned favorably in City's favor so far this year.

The Canada Colts couldn't get their mare to even trot in the first half and went into intermission at at 34-17 deficit.

That 20-minute lag was already the difference in the game as the Colts actually outscored City's bench players 31-30 in the second half, and rallied within 10 points halfway through the second half until City's starters returned and built the lead to 20 until the last two minutes of garbage time.

Derek Jenkins, a freshman guard from Gilroy, posted his best numbers of the season with 3 of 4 treys and an outside jumper.

While new to college, Jenkins was a stand-out in high school and chose City over other schools because of the coaching he'd experienced coming up through the San Jose City College Summer Basketball camps.

The San Jose-hosted Holiday Tournament begins Saturday. The men play at sister-collge Evergreen while the women host a tournament at San Jose.

Conference play is fast approaching. San Jose opens the season January 7 at Monterey (3-9). Their home league opener is January 10 with last year's conference kings Cabrillo (7-8).

Game Photos: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPiBDlDXNMQ

By the time City's Isaiah James grabbed a defensive rebound to squash #12 Foothill's last try to score with 4 seconds left to rescue a game they'd led until the last minute, the City College Jaguars had washed off the grime of two previous losses and had come to grips with the thought of beating a team they had previously beat earlier this season.

Quinston Reggins got his second highest point total of the year with outside shooting, drives through the paint, 12 for 13 from the free throw line.

James' 10 of 12 and B.J. Lassiter's 5 of 6 from the charity stripe kept City on pace with Foothill through several possessions that resulted with only in-and-out baskets.

Foothill was up by a point, 25-24 halfway through the first half and went into intermission leading 30-27.

In the first four minutes of the second half, Foothill compiled a 10-point lead 41-31 courtesy of an 11-4 run, but gave up half that five minutes later and were tied with City at 50 with 8 minutes left in the game.

As the gym warmed up, San Jose warmed-up to the idea of winning the game.

Which they did in the last two minutes of the game when outside shooting by Paul Hester and Reggin's free throws put San Jose even with Foothill at 62 with 1-minute remaining in the game.

And then Isaiah James woke up--grabbing a defensive rebound with 33 seconds left, pulling a pass from Reggins to score a lay-up, and then stealing a Foothill pass front court pass.

After Lassiter hit the front end of a one-plus-one to give City a little insurance 65-62, James then grabbed another rebound with 2 seconds left and was fouled, draining two free throws to ice the game 67-62.

San Jose is now 9-5 for the season.

Meanwhile, last year's Isaiah, that is Isaiah Johnson, is now playing at D-2 Regis University in Denver. In RU's most recent game, Johnson stole the ball with 2 seconds left to get the ball back after his teamate had hit a game winning trey. Regis is 2-0 in conference play.

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The third day of the tournament and a hard fought loss the night before resulted in San Jose’s terrible first half shooting—23 percent from the field and no three-pointers. Meanwhile, Courtney Miles, intent on avenging two previous losses to the Jags, led his team to a first half 24-13 lead with three field goals, one of them a trey.

Miles, a sophomore forward from Oakland’s Castlemont High School, led Alameda to continue their dominance of the hapless Jags in the game's second half and for his efforts earned a spot on the All-tournament team.

San Jose outscored Alameda 30-28 in the second half and came within 5 with 5 minutes remaining in the game, but it wasn’t enough to compensate for the first half nap time.

The Jags are now 8-5, having lost to three quality teams—-Riverside, Diablo Valley College, and Los Medanos-- while spacing out and dropping games to conference also-rans Skyline and Alameda.

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The lead passed back and forth for much of the first half of the semi-final tournament game against Los Medanos. A 14-6 run by Los Medanos in the last five minutes of the half gave control of the game to LMC, who led at half-time 31-23.

The Jaguars rallied back in the second half to match LMC’s scoring. San Jose City whittled down their deficit of 11 points to go up by 2 points with five minutes remaining in the game. But LMC’s defense befuddled San Jose City, who could not score in the game’s last four minutes of the contest.

With 41 ticks left on the game clock, LMC took seconds off the shot clock to :06 and then a three-point shot by Tyree Murray sealed the game for Los Medanos. A last ditch half-court prayer by Quinston Reggins hit the glass wide right, which put LMC in the tournament championship game against Ventura, and San Jose City in the 3rd place game against Alameda.

City’s Isaiah James had his second double-double of the tournament with 14 points and 10 rebounds.

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San Jose is now 8-3 as they won the first game of the San Jose City College Classic Tournament, which continues Friday and Saturday on campus.

Freshman forward Isaiah James notched the teams' first double-double of the season by also grabbing 10 rebounds, dividing them equally on both the offensive and defensive glass.

Maxwell Brown made his first big mark in his freshman career with 9 points, 4 for 4 from the floor, and 4 defensive boards.

B.J. Lassiter catalyzed the Jaguar offense with 6 points and 6 assists. Paul Hester netted 7.

San Jose City meets state #14 Los Medanos, who beat powerhouse state # 7 San Francisco last night, in the semi-final game at 6 pm Friday.

With a win, City meets state #15 Ventura at 3:30 pm Saturday for what would be their second tourney win in a row.

If they lose to Ventura, they'll probably meet Alameda for the third time this season for the third place hardware.

The Lady Jags hit the court Saturday following the men's tournament.

--report by Charles Heimler--see more at charlesheimler.blogspot.com.

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The Jaguar Men won the game and the tournament championship with a dominating win over Feather River, a team they only beat with a gift basket in the last seconds a week ago.

The win gives San Jose city a 7-3 record, which they take into this weekend's San Jose City College Classic Tournament in the Jaguar Den.

Feather River's cold shooting in the first half and San Jose's motion offense allowed the Jags to compile a 20-point lead at halftime.

Lassiter hit three treys and two field goals in the first half to take 13 points into the locker room, and led the Jags to lead 17-9 with 10 minutes left, 27-14 with 5 minutes left, and 34-14 at the end of the first half.

In the second half, City led by between 16-20 points until garbage time arrived in the game's final minutes when Feather River's Garhett Parent, a 6-6 freshman, found a hot hand and scored three consecutive baskets, one a 3-pointer.

SJCC's Neel Narayan, a freshman point guard, was named by the coaches as the tournament's most valuable player. He scored 12 in the final game's win, and had 9 assists against Napa Valley and 7 assists against Alameda. The "Fijian Flyer", whose Indian family immigrated from Fiji to Silicon Valley, is finding a home sparki ng Percy Carr's tried-and-true Speed City offense.

City's Isaiah James, freshman forward, and Chris Randel, sophomore forward, were named to the All-Tournament team. James' leaping prowess and Randel's emerging deft footwork is increasingly snagging the defensive rebounds that launch the Jaguar fast-break scoring machine.

The tournament host, Cosumnes River College, finished third with a win over Alameda. CRC is coached by James Giacomazzi, who played at San Jose City College, received a basketball scholarship to UC Riverside where he was All-Conference his senior year.

He was then an assistant coach at San Jose City College for five years while earning a masters in Human Performance/Sports Management at San Jose State before getting the head coach position at CRC.

The tournament win and their overall 7-3 record help boost San Jose City to move up two places to 10th place in the coaches Northern California poll.

report by Charles Heimler (charlesheimler.blogspot.com)

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San Jose City beat Alameda for the second time this season to advance to the semi-final game of the James Clark Classic Tournament.

Freshman point guard Neel Narayan, the "Fijian Flyer", paced the Jaguar offense with 7 assists, as besides Reggins three other players scored in double figures.

Narayan and sophomore guard B.J. Lassiter netted 13 while sophomore forward Chris Randel posted 11.

The Jaguars went a respectable 81% (18-22) from the charity stripe.

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San Jose City is back in the Northern California coaches' poll rankings at 7th, and they brought at 4-3 record into their opening game at the James Clark Classic Tournament hosted by Cosumnes River College in Sacramento.

With the win, the Jaguar Men advance to the tourney semi-final game at 6 pm Saturday against Alameda, who the Jags beat earlier in the season.

If they win, San Jose advances to the championship game at 4 pm Sunday. With a loss, they play for 3rd place at 2 pm Sunday. The opponent for either contest will be either Feather River or Consumnes, depending on their game Saturday at 8 pm.

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San Jose City came up second in a second tournament championship game, losing by 9 points to tournament host Diablo Valley College, perennial conference champion of the Big 8 Conference.

The Jags suffered in the first half with 28 percent shooting from the floor as their offense was stifled by DVC's full court defense.

DVC prevailed with more assists, 18-11, for the game. City did outrebound their opponents 35-29 but all too frequently couldn't convert those grabs into scores.

This weekend the Jags travel to Consumnes River College near Sacramento to play in the James Clark Classic Tournament.

They are back in the coaches' rankings with a 7th place berth in Northern California, and meet Napa Valley in their tourney opener at 4 pm.

--Charles Heimler

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Solano controlled most of the first half as their full-court, press defense confounded the Jaguar ball movement upcourt. They consistently led San Jose by 6 points through the first half.

With 2 minutes left in the first period, a steal by Jaguar guard B.J. Lassiter that was then passed to Quinston Reggins for a lay-up brought City to within 1 point, 33-32.

Neel Narayan's base line drive through the land of giants put San Jose up 34-33 at the half.

After intermission, freshman guard Narayan (15 points, 8 assists) picked up where he left off with a short floater to give the Jags a lead they would hold for the remainder of the game.

San Jose maintained a 10 point lead during most of the second half, at one point leading by 14 after the first 7 minutes of play.

Solano closed within 5 points at the 8:56 mark with a 15-6 run, but a series of turnovers took the air of their rally.

Those turnovers led to three successive scores by Jaguar sophomore forward Chris Randel from Oakland's McClymonds High School, one sparked by a steal by B.J. Lassiter, another an offensive rebound/put-back, and the third off an assist by Quinston Reggins (19 points, 6 assists).

The run sat San Jose back in the driver's seat for the remainder of the game, and put San Jose into the tournament championship final game against host Diablo Valley College, who beat conference champion Cabrillo in the Saturday nightcap. San Jose hopes to notch their 5th win at 6 pm Sunday.

--report by Charles Heimler

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Riddled with turnovers and missed open shots, San Jose trailed Feather River for the entire first half, which ended with Feather River leading 33-25, an 8-point margin that they increased a fourth of the way in the second half to 45-34.

After a half-time adjustment session with the coaches, San Jose worked the lead down to 1-point with 5 minutes remaining in the contest when forward Chris Randel grabbed a defensive rebound, hit with a pass the streaking upcourt Quinston Reggins, who handed off to B.J. Lassiter in the right side fast break lane for the lay-up.
br> On the next possession, Reggins notched a stolen pass and hurled to ball to Lassiter, who when his path down the lane was blocked, stopped, stepped out, pivoted, and then hit an 6-foot jumper.

The Jags then grabbed the game's momentum for the last 5-minute run when Randel stole a Feather River look-in pass, hit Reggins who missed the downcourt lay-up when double-teamed at the other end, and then grabbed the follow-up rebound for a 2-point put-back.

Feather River missed 4 scoring opportunities with the game tied 55-55 in the last minute as Feather River set their sight on the win and San Jose defended for the overtime.

And then the Jags got an unexpected break.

A Feather River turnover on an inbound pass with ELEVEN seconds left on the clock led to a missed shot by San Jose that rebounded off a Feather River's player hands, to the floor, and into the waiting grasp of San Jose's B.J. Lassiter, whose floater after the loose-ball pickup swished the Jaguar net to ice the cake with 1 second left.

It was unexpected good fortune for Percy Carr's team, which is now 3-2 and headed for the tourney semi-final game with Solano (5-2) Saturday at 6pm. If the Jags make it to final game it will be against perennial rivals DVC or Cabrillo.
br> ---report by Charles Heimler (charles.heimler@sjcc.ed)

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San Jose brought a 7th in the state ranking into the game with high hopes of picking up the level of play that took them to a runner-up finish in the season's opening tournament.
A dull opening few minutes and an abdication of the boards and a series of turnovers in the games's last five minutes to the 1-2 visitors from Skyline instead lead to the Jags posting their second loss of the season and an adjustment of that 7th place state berth to a 4th in Northern California.
The distributed scoring in the opening tournament that impressed coaches across the state took the night off against Skyline, as only the Jaguar bigs notched double figures for the night--sophomore Chris Randel with 12 and freshman Isaiah James with 10.
City had plenty of opportunities to drain points as sophomore guard Javin Charlot dished 5 assists and freshman guard Neel Narayan 4.
San Jose fended off a 10-4 run by Skyline in the first half's final 2:30. That momentum run ignited by a trey by Skyline's Ronney Freeman brought the Jag lead to 44-38 at the intermission.
Rodney Freeman, the second half of Skyline's brother-brother offensive combo, picked up where his sibling left off with a three-pointer to open the second half's scoring, and by two minutes of play Skyline had tied San Jose at 44.
San Jose took the game back and rested on 7 point cushion until the last 5 minutes when Skyline rallied for game.
The day after Thanksgiving the Jags travel to Pleasant Hill for Diablo Valley College's Chevron Tournament, meeting Feather River at 4 pm.
--Charles Heimler

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The opening of the men’s basketball season coincided with the women’s home opener away at Evergreen College. The men finished second in their tournament with two wins while the women notched their first game win. City College’s offense had two games in which they scored 50 points in a half, and improbably lost when scoring 87 in the tournament championship contest with eventual tourney champ Riverside, whose rebounding surplus got enough second chance shots to compile 98 points for the game. Riverside grabbed far more rebounds at both ends of the court than San Jose City, a difference that Assistant Coach Brad Stevers said was decisive. The Tigers, who last year were seeded 9th in the southern California playoffs and conference champions the year prior to that, overpowered the Jags on the boards.
Lassiter and Reggins were named to the All-Tournament Team.
San Jose takes its 2-1 2008-2009 season record into the next game at home against Skyline, this Saturday at 3 pm.

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Sophomore Reggins and freshman Neel Narayan each dished 10 assists in the game. Chris Randel, B.J. Lassiter, and Isaiah James each scored 13.
The two team's traded the lead back and forth for most of the first half. With seven minutes left in the opening period, Isaiah James put City up for good, but it took him three tries. First it was 2 missed free throws, second it was 1 of 2 free throws, and finally the third time was the charm, as James, a freshman forward, punctuated a Randel defensive rebound, outlet pass to a streaking up the floor Reggins, who fired an assist pass to James in the key for a two-handed dunk.
Foothill challenged within 2 points in the last five minutes of the half, but City gained an 8-point cushion fueled by a trey by Lassiter, 2 penetraion drives from half-court for lay-ups by Reggins, and an inside baseline line jumper by Brandon Criss. Halftime score was 41-33 in favor of San Jose.
In the second half, the Jags offense exploded and its defense contracted as San Jose scored 51 points in the half while limiting Foothill to 32. The win put the Jags in the tournament final.

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The Jaguars opened their season with a 15-player squad and high hopes to better their last year's record of 16-14. City scored 50 points in the first half on their way to winning their first game of the 2008-2009 season. Eleven of City's players scored in the game; scorers after Lassiter were Chris Randel with 13, Quinston Reggins with 8, Javin Charlot, 7, Brandon Criss, 7, Neel Narayan, 6, Tim Harrison, 6, Isaiah James, 6, Derek Jensen, 6, Paul Hester 5, Stevon Jones, 2.
Alameda was only able to run with the Jags for the first five minutes of the game, at one point leading 14-12. But a tip-in by Chris Randel and two consecutive scores by Tim Harrison put the Jags ahead of the visitors for good midway through the first half. A Quinston Reggins alley-opp to an Isaiah James dunk ended the first half's action and City held control of the second half to advance into the tourney's semi-final round.

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San Jose City College came from behind in the second half to beat DeAnza (3-9/8-21) to end their season 5-7 in conference and 16-14 overall.

With a win, DeAnza could have squeaked by San Jose for fourth place in the conference standings by virtue of having beat the Jags in their first match-up, but the loss relegated the Dons to the Coast-South conference cellar, and it gave San Jose a winning season after this year’s rebuilding effort following last year’s losing record.

It also added to San Jose City Coach Percy Carr’s total of 721 wins, the most of any two-year college coach in the country.

Quinston Reggins re-discovered the scoring button on his controller, netting 32 points, one short of his season high of 33, which included 5 from outside the arc and 7 of 10 free throws.

B.J. Lassiter contributed 17 points and 5 assists.

Chris Randel added ten points, matching his season high score, while grabbing a college-career high of 14 rebounds while sinking 4 of 4 from the charity stripe.

Tim Harrison scored his season high of 10.

And sophomore Isaiah Johnson, playing his last game as a Jaguar, got 7 points, 7 rebounds, 4 blocks and went a perfect 3 for 3 from the free throw line. Johnson ended the season with a 14 point scoring average.

DeAnza's Melvin Sneed, a freshman guard from Denver-East High School, led all scorers with 34.

The first half of the game did not go well for San Jose City.

After keeping pace in scoring with the Dons through the opening minutes, DeAnza’s defense started dominating the Jags midway through the first half.

A 10-0 run by the DeAnza that gave them a 25-16 lead allowed them to press/trap San Jose, which produced three consecutive San Jose turnovers when the Jaguars could not break the press.

Those turnovers produced scores of a Trey by Sneed, and another two points on free throws by Roderic Wilson (Warrensville/Ohio), which staked DeAnza to a 14-point lead, 32-18, at 9:14 in the first half.

San Jose kept racking up turnovers—-compiling 17 in the first period—-and got into early foul trouble as DeAnza dominated the wrestling match down low.

With 7 minutes remaining in the first half, San Jose remembered how to advance the ball into the front court and defend by moving their feet rather than their elbows and began to chip away at the deficit.

Reggins grabbed a defensive rebound and passed to a streaking Tim Harrison, who was fouled on the lay-up and converted the penalty shots to put the score at 34-21.

Isaiah Johnson then blocked a DeAnza shot out-of-bounds on the next possession, DeAnza failed to score on the inbound play, and Chris Randel tipped-in his own shot at the other end to help the Jags gain a basket on DeAnza.

At the 4-minute mark, Reggins drained a 3 set up by a pass from Harrison, who then swished a trey of his own on the next San Jose possession.

Reggins next made two jump-shots and Lassiter put back his own missed short-jumper to halve DeAnza’s lead, 42-35, as the first period ended.

San Jose actually scored more baskets than DeAnza in the first half (14 to 12), but the Jaguars commited enough personal fouls to give DeAnza a 15-21 to 3-4 advantage at the free throw line.

The second period of play began with a Quinston Reggins’ steal of DeAnza’s first possession, which he then ran coast-to-coast for a lay-up and score.

Over the second half’s first ten minutes, Reggins converted two free throws earned when he was fouled on a dribble-drive to the hoop, a 4-point play when he drained a trey just as the shot-clock buzzer sounded, and another 3-point shot following an Isaiah Johnson defensive shot-block.

Matched with a basket by Lassiter, a score by Randel following another Johnson shot-block, and a Johnson put-back, and San Jose at the 10-minute mark had closed to within 2 points of DeAnza, 55-53.

San Jose City then tied the score, 57-57, 90 seconds later when Randel put a rebound back into the hole, and then crept ahead, 59-57, when San Jose stopped DeAnza with an Alex Cowley (Deer Valley/Antioch) steal, followed on the next DeAnza possession by yet another Johnson shot-block.

B.J. Lassiter picked up the loose ball and then ran the court and drove between two defenders for a lay-up.

Johnson then swatted the next DeAnza shot attempt out-of-bounds; the Dons’ inbound play only resulted in two missed free-throws after a San Jose foul.

The Jags then rallied for three consecutive scores—-an assist by Reggins to Randel, and tip-ins by both Lassiter and Johnson—-for a 65-57 lead with 6:20 on the game clock.

DeAnza went up on San Jose 68-67 with 3 minutes to go in the game when Erick Seaman (Air Academy) drained two from the floor, and Sneed and Wilson each made a basket.

Alex Cowley made a free throw plus the bonus to give San Jose the lead for good, 69-68, after he was fouled in the backcourt attempting to grab a defensive rebound.

San Jose City protected their margin when steals, first by Randel and then by Lassiter, stopped DeAnza’s next two offensive possessions.

That Lassiter steal of a Dons’ front court pass followed by a coast-to-coast run and then a 5’ floater sealed the deal for the Jaguars, 73-68, with 90 ticks left on the scoreboard clock.

The subsequent parade of Jaguar shooters to the free throw line following DeAnza's desperation, intentional fouls added to the San Jose margin as the remaining seconds of the season expired.

(report by Charles Heimler)

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San Jose City College earned their fourth conference win against seven losses in this squeaker against Gavilan (3-8/9-22) that was not decided until the last minute of the game.

B.J. Lassiter hit a trey with 3:30 remaining in the game to put City up 61-59. Gavilan's Jesse LoBue (23 points for the night) then tied the score, 61-61, with a 5 foot jumper over City's Isaiah Johnson.

With 2 minutes left, City's Quinston Reggins drove through the lane for a lay-up, which gave San Jose the lead, 63-61.

Gavilan's Vince Bautista (San Benito H.S) then stole a Jag pass and ran the court, but his lay-up had enough side spin so that it entered the basket and then spun out.

City then turned the ball over on a back court violation with 1:13 left in the game, Gavilan missed another lay-up, and San Jose turned the ball over on a traveling violation with 20 clicks left on the game clock.

After a full time out by Gavilan and then a full time out by San Jose, Gavilan broke City's full court press and fed the ball to LoBue, who missed an 8 foot jumper at the buzzer to give the win to San Jose.

Gavilan got on the scoreboard first when Jesse LoBue, like seven of his sophomore teammates playing their last home game for the Rams, hit an outside jumper.

San Jose City’s Brandon Criss converted one of two free throws and Isaiah Johnson put back a rebound to make the score 3-2 for the Jaguars after the first three minutes.

Both teams traded scores through most of first half, with neither leading by over five points.

Gavilan crept ahead by a handful, 12-7, at the 12-minute mark when LoBue was credited with a score on a goaltending call and Luke Murrell (Seaside H.S.) drove through the paint for a lay-up.

San Jose City managed to get a 4-point lead, 28-24 with three minutes left in the period, which dissipated to 29-28 in Gavilan’s favor at the intermission when City was whistled for a 5-second violation and a foul while Gavilan’s Murrell hit a 3-pointer and LoBue another outside jumper.

Gavilan surged to a 6-point lead, 34-28, in the second half’s first two minutes off a Micah Jones (Live Oak, Morgan Hill) trey and two Ben Chambliss (Seaside) free throws, and then to a seven-point lead, 38-31 after 4 minutes.

Ross Puséy came off the bench at point guard at the 8-minute mark and sparked a 5-minute San Jose City rally that included two assists by him to Isaiah Johnson, a score on an outside jumper, a strip of the ball on defense that resulted in a pick-up steal by B.J. Lassiter who fed Quinston Reggins for the score, and another dish to Lassiter for a trey.

Another defensive pick by Reggins who then passed to Johnson for the lay-up put the score at 43-42 for San Jose at the 13:30 mark.

Another offensive surge by San Jose City started by a Reggins steal of a Gavilan front-court pass that he converted after running the court with a one-handed lay-up off the dribble, a jumper from the left wing, and a lay-up following a drive through the paint set the table for a short jumper by Brandon Criss to put San Jose City ahead 51-47 with seven minutes remaining in the contest.

Two more baskets by Reggins and a Johnson tip-in matched by three from the floor by LoBue, two by Jones, and another by Scott Benson (Anzar H.S./Aromas) put the teams even 61-61 with 2:12 to go.

Reggins last drive gave the edge to San Jose, 63-61, and the game ended with Gavilan unable to take advantage of two Jaguar turnovers in the game’s last two minutes.

Isaiah Johnson--15

B.J. Lassiter--11

(report by Charles Heimler)

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It was a disappointing afternoon for the Jaguars, who hoped to avenge their 3-point loss last month to West Valley, a team entering the day with a 13-15 overall record.

San Jose City was only in the game for the first five minutes after two early scores by B.J. Lassiter, one a 3-pointer and the second a lay-up after a steal by Isaiah Johnson, matched West Valley at 7-7.

Two scores by the Vikings’ Marseilles Stewart and then a 3-pointer by the Jaguars’ Brandon Criss put the score at 13-10 in favor of West Valley after 5 minutes, but that would be as close as San Jose would be for most of the first period, as West Valley steadily increased its lead through the first half.

San Jose City did challenge West Valley at the 7-minute mark when two steals by Quinston Reggins were converted into scores—one a passing series from Reggins to Lassiter to Isaiah Johnson under the basket for lay-up and another resulting from a theft by Reggins of a West Valley front court pass and subsequent fast-break relay to Marshawn Landrine for a pull-up 3-pointer, to bring San Jose within three, 27-24.

Then West Valley played out the rest of the first half with an 8-2 run as Marseilles Stewart hit two consecutive baskets while his twin brother, Dominic Stewart, both freshman from ISA High School in San Francisco, collected one of his scores on a baseline drive while San Jose could only net two free throw baskets by B.J. Lassiter.

The first half ended in West Valley’s favor, 34-26.

West Valley opened the first half with three from outside the arc in the first two minutes of play by Dominic Stewart, Nick Alexander (Bellarmine), and Steve Collins (Dyett, Chicago).

San Jose responded with a Reggins’ assist to Chris Randel followed on the next possession by a jumper by Quinston Reggins, but by the time San Jose coach Percy Carr called a time-out with 15 minutes left in the game, West Valley had run up a twenty-point lead, 53-33, as San Jose had no answer for the Vikings’ Alexander twins.

West Valley’s largest lead was 28 with seven minutes left in the game, 73-45, and with the win improved to 14-15 overall and 6-4 in the Coast-South Conference.

San Jose could only muster four Isaiah Johnson free throws in the games’ last five minutes until Reggins hit a jumper in the last ten seconds.

B.J. Lassiter ended the game with 11 points, 5 assists, and 4 of 4 from the free throw line.

Both Quinston Reggins and Chris Randel finished with 8 points.

Brandon Criss had 7 points and 4 rebounds.

Marshawn Landrine collected a season high of 6 points.

Isaiah Johnson grabbed 10 rebounds.

San Jose (3-7 in conference) has two remaining games—Wednesday at 7 against Gavilan in Gilroy and Saturday at home at 3 against DeAnza.

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San Jose City College dropped a conference game to visiting Monterey Peninsula College and now is 3-6 in Coast-South conference play with three contests against West Valley, Gavilan, and DeAnza to go in this season.

Monterey took an early lead in the game but both squads were tied, 10-10 after the first eight minutes, as San Jose opened its offensive attack with scores by Javin Charlot, Alex Cowley, and two buckets by Brandon Criss (13 points/6 rebounds).

Monterey edged-out a 6-point lead, 18-12, in the next three minutes after James Sandoval (17 pts./9 rebounds) dropped three in a row from the low post.

The two teams stayed within four points of each other as San Jose City’s Chris Randel (10 pts./4 rebounds) helped the Jags keep pace with the Lobos with baskets on three consecutive San Jose possessions.

Down by 1 point, 31-30 with 1:30 left in the period, a Tim Harrison put-back, and B.J. Lassiter perimeter goal, and then a Harrison put-back dunk gave San Jose City a mini-rally that sent the teams into intermission tied, 36-36.

The wheels came off the San Jose City bus immediately in the second half.

Monterey went on a 13-0 scoring run in the second period’s first four minutes ignited when Theo Jackson hammered a basket off an alley-oop pass, and then stole a Jaguar pass and ran the court for an uncontested lay-up

Jermaine Carter, Mike Miller, and James Sandoval all found the hole, as City could not find its offense. After a full time-out, San Jose City’s Ross Pusey came off the bench and hit a ten-foot jumper from the center of the key to mark the Jaguars’ first score of the second half.

Pusey stayed in the game at point-guard, and ended the game with a season-high of 8 points. He contributed four assists, distributed to both B.J. Lassiter and Brandon Criss, who with Pusey accounted for all of the Jaguars’ second half field goals.

San Jose City came within 5 points of Monterey, 71-66, with 1-minute left in the game when B.J. Lassiter hit a trey, but a long full-court pass followed by a dunk by Monterey’s Theo Jackson extinguished any hope of a San Jose desperation comeback.

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San Jose City ran with conference leading Cabrillo (8-1) in the game’s first half, but fell behind early and big in the second half, as Cabrillo outshot San Jose from the floor over the course of the game, draining 36 baskets to San Jose City’s 24.

The Jaguars came into the game hoping to avenge their 27-point loss to Cabrillo in their first meeting this year. Cabrillo suffered its first conference loss to DeAnza (3-6) this week, which helped to support San Jose’s hope that a revenge win would sweeten their season and salvage their 3-5 conference record.

San Jose City scored first on a basket by Brandon Criss, which was matched on the next possession by Cabrillo’s Chris Sharp (Santa Cruz), a 6’7” 225-pound center whose low post scoring would help him end up as the game’s high scorer with 18.

Three drives from the low post by City’s Isaiah Johnson, two baskets by B.J. Lassiter, one a lay-in off the fast break and a coast-to-coast effort following a steal, a lay-up following a steal by Alex Cowley, a trey by Javin Charlot, and an outside jumper by Quinston Reggins helped put San Jose City in the lead 19-18 halfway through the first act.

Scores by five different Cabrillo Seahawks over the next eight minutes posted the visitors to a 36-30 lead, the largest of the first period, with 2:20 left in the half.

Two 3-point baskets by Jaguar Javin Charlot in 1-minute of play brought City to within a basket as the first half ended, 38-36.

A technical foul called just after the first half expired on Cabrillo coach Tony Marcopulos following a warning from the referee and then more “F-Bombs” directed at the men-in-stripes’ direction, resulted in San Jose City’s Quinston Reggins depositing two peaches through the basket before the second half clock began its countdown, evening the score 38-38.

San Jose stayed in the game for the first five minutes of the second period, trailing by 5, 52-47.

Then Cabrillo ignited a 20-5 run in 9 minutes, and sat atop a 20-point lead, 72-52, with six minutes left in the game.

San Jose City’s Ross Pusey (Silver Creek) came off the bench to ping an outside jumper and a 3-pointer, and Javin Charlot scored another of his four baskets from outside the arc, but San Jose managed just ten points in the game’s last minutes, falling off the pace set in the first half.

Four Jaguars scored in double-figures—Isaiah Johnson (14), Javin Charlot (14), Quinston Reggins (11), and B.J. Lassiter (10).

Four Seahawks also scored in double-figures—Chris Sharp (18), Denver Mack (Burton H.S.) (16), Jared Wood (S. Lake Tahoe) (13), and Aaron Pearson (So. University H.S.) (13).

Javin Charlot made 5 of 10 (50%) field goals and 4 of 6 3-pointers (66%).

B.J. Lassiter went 5 for 10 from the field (50%), and collected 4 rebounds and 5 assists despite missing 5 minutes of the first half with a turned ankle.

Isaiah Johnson hit 5 of 7 from the floor (71%) and 4 of 5 from the line (80%).

Quinston Reggins was a perfect 4 of 4 from the free throw line.

San Jose City’s next game is at home, Wednesday against Monterey at 7:30. It follows the Lady Jags’ game at home against Cabrillo at 5:30.

(report by Charles Heimler)

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San Jose City improved its conference record to 3-4 and 14-11 overall with a win over Hartnell (4-4/8-15), limiting Hartnell’s 3-point dependent offense, controlling the boards with 35 rebounds, and finding the open man on offense with over 20 assists.

Jaguar B.J. Lassiter had his college-career high game with 26 points, which included 3 from the arc, 10 field goals, and 3 for 5 from the free throw line. His second college double-double came with 10 rebounds, 4 assists and 6 steals.

Lassiter came ready to play from the first moments of the game, stealing a Hartnell offensive pass and running the court for a lay-up to put City up 2-0. The Jags would lose that lead only once in the game, when the Panthers edged up 8-7 at the 15 minute mark of the first period when Chris Warne (Salinas H.S) hit a trey.

San Jose’s Brandon Criss then coverted two penalty shots, putting City back on top 9-8, and it was the Jags ball game from that point on.

At the ten minute mark of the first half, San Jose led 26-16, following a run that included a jumper from the free throw line area by Tim Harrison, two 3-point baskets by Quinston Reggins, a long trey by Javin Charlot, an short corner jumper by Alex Cowley, and two baskets by Lassiter.

In the last three minutes of the half, Hartnell put together an 8-2 run when San Jose gave up a personal foul, missed a block-out on a defensive rebound, and turned the ball over on a traveling violation produced by the Panther press.

Meanwhile, Hartnell’s motion offense found the on switch, resulting in a converted free throw by Ian Hosford (Hong Kong Int’l.) , a turn-around jumper from the low-post by Chris Warne, and a 3-pointer by Chris Romney (Farmington, UT)when no Jag faced him up.

The Panther burst and the Jaguar fade brought Hartnell to within 5 points as the half ended, 36-31.

San Jose Coach Percy Carr then had his team huddle on the court under the bleachers for the half-time adjustment session, forsaking the time-consuming trip back to the visitor’s locker room.

The result was that the Jags came back out in the second half and quickly ran up their lead to 11 points, 46-35, after the first four minutes courtesy of 2 steals by Quinston Reggins, a put back by Brandon Criss, a basket and two free throws by Tim Harrison, and a high-arc jumper by Lassiter.

San Jose City extended its lead to 16 points at the 10 minute mark, 61-45, and Hartnell never got within 14 for the rest of the game.

Freshman forward Tim Harrison’s game was a season high-point for him, as he netted 10 points, 6 of them field goals, and hit 4 of 6 from the charity stripe.

Chris Randel finished with 8 points and 6 rebounds; Brandon Criss contributed 6 points and 6 rebounds.

San Jose City plays next at home this Saturday at 3 pm against conference leaders Cabrillo College (7-1) , who yesterday lost their first conference game to DeAnza (3-5), 56-53.

The Jaguars are now 2-0 against Hartnell this season, having bested the Panthers in their conference opener.

Conference standings---Cabrillo (7-1), Monterey (5-3), Hartnell (4-4), West Valley (3-4), SJCC (3-4), DeAnza (3-5), Gavilan 2-6).

(report by Charles Heimler)

Where are they now? Former Jaguar Jamon Hill is a senior at D-1 San Jose State, and lately he's been on fire.

Saturday he had his career best game with 17 points--4-8 FG, 2-4 3PT, 7-8 FT, 5 assists, 2 steals, as the Spartans (10-11,2-6) came from an 18 point deficit to lose by a basket to New Mexico State(12-12,6-3).

On January 17 when the Spartans beat WAC rival Fresno State, 69-65, Hill returned to the starting line-up and achieved his previous all-career high scoring game, collecting 14 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists.

Here's how his coach George Nessman, explained Hill's success on the Spartan website: "I wrote a little deal for Jamon on the plan back from Hawaii. Jamon and I sat together on the plane ride. These are the five things he needed to do in Justin Graham's (injured in UH game) absence. If Jamon is not willing to do it, then we need to find an alternative, tell me now. I handed it to him, had him read it and went to sit with him. He said, 'Coach, don't worry. I know exactly what I need to do.' He's been struggling a little bit getting his rhythm. He played an outstanding game and we need him to play an outstanding game."

Hill's picture is featured on SJSU men's basketball website (www.sjsu.edu--click "spartan athletics")

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San Jose City (2-4 conference) dropped a must-win conference match-up with the DeAnza Dons (1-5 in conference), ending the first round of this year’s conference play with the same record and wins against the same teams, Hartnell and Gavilan, as last season.

The contest started slowly as both teams started off in a half-court offense but neither could find the scoring handle. San Jose City’s Quinston Reggins put the first digit on the board when he converted one of the three free throws awarded after he was fouled on a three-point attempt, and then hit a trey to put San Jose up 4-2 after nearly four minutes of the game.

DeAnza got its own initial scoring burst when Michael Herdandez, a 6 foot sophomore guard (Piedmont H.S.) deposited a free throw and then his own trey to even the score 6-6. Both teams traded scores in the early going and were tied, 13-13, at the first period’s halfway point.

Jaguar assist-score combos from Reggins to Chris Randel and Kenny McGowan to Brandon Criss kept the score even, 17-17, until the 8 minute mark. The Dons then went on a 2-minute, 8-0 run to compile an 8-point lead, 25-17, with 6 minutes left in the half.

Scores by San Jose were then matched by scores by DeAnza, with the Dons adding slightly to their advantage, leading by 12, 33-21, when Melvin Sneed, a 6’5” freshman guard (Denver-East), drained a 3-pointer. Sneed would wind up as the game’s leading scorer with 28.

San Jose City came within 7 of DeAnza in the first half, 37-30, by the last minute of the period after a low post drive by Isaiah Johnson and two field goals by B.J. Lassiter, one a 3-point play that resulted when he grabbed a defensive rebound, sprinted on the dribble to the basket, took a hard foul that spun him around 180 degrees, and flipped the ball from waist level over his left shoulder and into the hoop.

City’s trap then forced DeAnza to call a time out after fumbling the ball out-of-bounds, but a Reggins lay-up flushed back out of the net and the teams entered the intermission still at 37-30.

San Jose City crept back to tie the score, 42-42, in the first five minutes of the game’s second half, fueled by outside jumpers by Alex Cowley (8 points) and Reggins. A personal foul on Reggins on a three-point attempt was as good as the basket as he drained all three free throws.

A trap-induced steal by City of DeAnza’s next possession resulted in a Kenny McGowan dish to Reggins for another trey, and a Reggins shot that looked like a pass was grabbed by Brandon Criss who floated a 5-foot jumper right in front of the basket. San Jose’s mini-rally gave them 47, which was answered in kind when DeAnza’s Snead chi-chinged a trey and Roderic Wilson, a 6’5” sophomore forward (Warrensville Hts/Ohio) converted an offensive rebound to again tie the score, 47-47, with 13 minutes to go in the game.

A San Jose City turnover enabled a score by the Dons’ Greg Thacker, a 6’2” guard (Cupertino) for a 2 point lead, which was then followed on City’s next possession with a Cowley jumper that tied the game again, 49-49.

And then DeAnza’s Kenneth McKinney got his highlights by in quick succession hitting a jump-shot, dunking off a half-court pass through the leaky Jaguar press-trap, and then scoring another basket to put DeAnza in the lead for good, 56-49 with 11 minutes left.

Wanting to earn their first conference win, the Dons’ went on to defensively dominate the Jaguars, who were disadvantaged when Kenny McGowan had to leave the game with a broken finger and Isaiah Johnson and B.J. Lassiter had to sit after each collected their 5th personal fouls.

With 3 minutes left in the game and a 69-60 DeAnza lead, San Jose was sustained for a few moments on life support by a front-court steal of a DeAnza pass by Marshawn Landrine, who deposited two free throws earned when he was fouled trying to finish up the drive down the court to the basket.

A free throw by Alex Cowley when he was hacked attempting to put-back an offensive rebound followed by his jumper from the wing took the Jags to within 5, 70-65, with a half-minute left. A Brandon Criss rebound and one more Reggins outside shot in desperation time were matched by two charity conversions off the intentional foul by the Dons’ Melvin Sneed.

SJCC’s Chris Randel finished with 10 and Brandon Criss 8, but the distributed scoring was not enough to offset City’s anemic 9 first half field goals and second half defensive fade.

The Jaguars take the weekend off and travel to play Hartnell in Salinas Wednesday at 7. They host Cabrillo, undefeated in conference at 6-0, Saturday, February 9 at 3 pm.

(report by Charles Heimler)

Coast Conference South Standings (1-31-08)

CABRILLO 6-0

HARTNELL 4-2

MONTEREY 3-3

WEST VALLEY 3-3

SAN JOSE CITY 2-4

GAVILAN 2-4

DEANZA 1-5

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San Jose City College (13-10/2-3) claimed its second conference win as four players scored in double figures. While Gavilan scored more field goals than San Jose City (25-23), the Jaguars' 77 % free throw shooting, many in a double-bonus situation, provided the decisive margin in the game, as Kenny McGowan hit a perfect 9 of 9 and Isaiah Johnson hit 9 of 11 (82%).

Gavilan took an early lead in the game as four different players, Scott Benson (Anzar,Aromas), Jessie LoBue (Santa Cruz), John Williams (Oak Grove, San Jose), and Micah Jones (Love Oak, Morgan Hill) connected from the field, putting Gavilan on top 14-12 after the first 8 minutes of play.

San Jose City then took the lead 15-14 on a pass from Kenny McGowan to B.J. Lassiter, who then hit a 3-point shot. Two possessions later Quinston Reggins grabbed a rebound and fed to McGowan, who converted a lay-up into a 3-point play, extending the Jaguars’ lead to 18-14. With just under 11 minutes left in the first half, a Blair Wortham (Gilroy) basket brought the visitors to within 2 points, 18-16.

San Jose City padded its lead to a dozen, 34-22, with 3 minutes left in the first half, as Chris Randel (9 points for the game) converted an offensive rebound into a score and completed a McGowan to Lassiter to Randel pass series in the motion offense.

In the last 3 minutes of the period, however, Gavilan outscored the home team 8-0. Gavilan’s Ben Chambliss (Seaside) took advantage of a San Jose City turnover to hit a buzzer buster and send the teams into the locker room at 34-30.

In the first minute of the second half, Gavilan continued its momentum and caught the Jaguars slumbering, rallying within one point, 36-35, as Scott Benson put-back a rebound and Micah Johnson added a 3-point play.

San Jose Coach Percy Carr then called a time-out for a short basketball tutoring session, which put the Jags back on track as McGowan hit from the perimeter, Johnson drove through the lane for a lay-up, and McGowan hit two free throws. Coupled with San Jose’s full-court press that resulted in two successive turnovers by Gavilan, and San Jose sat atop a 42-35 advantage at the 16 minute mark.

From that point, San Jose City’s advantage was never fewer than 8 points, as Gavilan focused its offense around outside shooting by Jessie LoBue, a 6’7’’ sophomore forward, who was the game’s leading scorer with 20.

Quinston Reggins scored 16 with 4 assists, Kenny McGowan had 15 with 4 assists, B.J. Lassiter netted 12, and Chris Randel 9.

San Jose City’s top rebounders were Johnson, 10, Randel, 9, Lassiter, 6, and Brandon Criss, 5.

Where are they now? Dave Smith, last year’s team captain whose season ended midway through the schedule with an injury that resulted in knee surgery, had the best game of his four-year university career. Smith is now a junior point guard at Cameron University (3-15/1-2) in the Lone Star Conference in Oklahoma. On Saturday against Northeastern State (8-10/2-2), Smith helped his team to its first conference win with 18 points, 6-11 from the field, 3-4 from the arc, and 3-3 from the free throw line, and 6 assists while playing 38 minutes.

Last week, Smith matched up in a conference game against former San Jose City College team mate Michael Dyson, who is a junior forward with East Central University (10-8/1-3) in Ada, Oklahoma, and is averaging 7 points per game.

Coast Conference South Standings (1/27/08)

Cabrillo 5-0

Hartnell 3-2

West Valley 3-2

Monterey 3-3

San Jose City 2-3

Gavilan 2-3

DeAnza 0-5

(reports by Charles Heimler)

Game Photos:

San Jose City College Men’s basketball team came up short in the final fifteen seconds of an up-tempo, nip-and-tuck game against West Valley, in a contest that saw 20 lead changes and 9 ties.

West Valley, a perennial conference champion and state tournament play-off team, has not skipped a beat as their former head coach Danny Yoshikawa (144-47 over the past 5 seasons) moved to an assistant position at UC Santa Barbara, and Colin Pfaff (DeAnza, CSUMB) and Ryan Madry (WVC, U of West Georgia) were elevated from assistant coaches to co-head coach positions at the Saratoga college.

San Jose City continues to struggle in conference play from the charity stripe (14 for 22, 63% against West Valley), converting scores in transition, and holding a lead, despite racking up numerous steals on defense, out-rebounding their opponents, and double-digit scoring from three or more players in each game.

The two teams traded baskets through most of the first half, with the score tied 15-15 at the ten minute mark. B.J. Lassiter had a hot hand in the early going, ringing up two from the arc and two from the paint for 10 points in the first ten minutes.

Two free throws and an outside shot by Quinston Reggins and two free throws and a 7’ jumper by Isaiah Johnson provided the rest of the first half scoring for the Jags while West Valley was powered into a 27-25 first half lead in part by three-point scores by Dominic Stewart, a freshman guard from San Francisco and Nick Alexander, a sophomore forward from Bellarmine.

San Jose City took the lead in the opening minute of the second half on a Brandon Criss tip-in of a Javin Charlot shot, 30-29. From that point, the two teams resumed the tooth-and-nail battle begun in the first half, trading scores and the lead, with the edge slightly going to West Valley, who never led by more than 4 points.

Three dribble-drive baskets in four minutes by Kenny McGowan, a low-post turn-round by Isaiah Johnson, and a put-back of a rebound by Brandon Criss helped San Jose City keep pace with West Valley’s outside scoring by Jabari McIntosh, a sophomore forward from Newark Memorial in Antioch and Marseilles Stewart, and freshman guard/forward from San Francisco.

With the scored tied at 43-43, San Jose City’s B.J. Lassiter grabbed a rebound off his own shot and ignited a 6 minute Jaguar run in which they outscored West Valley 15-7, resulting in an 8 point lead, largest of the night for either team, 58-50, with just over 6 minutes left in the game.

The scoring burst included a three-point play by Alex Cowley, who following a miss wrestled the ball away from the Viking player who’d grabbed the rebound, hit the lay-up from down under despite getting fouled, and converted on the penalty shot.

Johnson then punched the ticket on one of his drive-like-a train moves through the paint, Reggins pulled the handle on two outsides shots plus a trey, and Javin Charlot scored off an assist from Johnson.

With six minutes remaining, however, the air began to leak from the San Jose City College balloon as West Valley made its own run, besting the Jags 16-5 to take the lead 66-63 with just under two minutes left in the game as Marseilles Stewart drained 6 and Jabari MacIntosh 4 in the Viking rally.

San Jose City’s Javin Charlot kept the patient alive with a three-point play with 15 seconds left in the match, but by then San Jose had run out of rabbits and out of hats.

B.J. Lassiter netted 12 and Isaiah Johnson 11; Quinston Reggins dished 4 assists.

San Jose City meets Gavilan next at home this Saturday at 3 pm.

(report by Charles Heimler)

San Jose City Jaguars Stat Leaders (20 games)

Scoring avg-- Reggins 17, Johnson 15, Lassiter 10

FG%-- Johnson 56, Randell 47, Cowley 46

3PT%-- Landrine 40, Criss 36, Reggins 30, Charlot 30

FT%-- McGowan 87, Reggins 80

Assists per game-- McGowan 3, Reggins 3

Rebounds per game-- Johnson 7, Criss 6.

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It was payback time for the Monterey Lobos, who avenged their Holiday Tournament Championship loss to San Jose City in a conference game on their home court. The mostly-freshman Jaguar team flattened for the night on their learning curve, shooting just 32 % from the floor and 52% from the line.

A Kenny McGowan steal of a pass on Monterey’s first possession of the game seemed to signal a good omen for the Jags. Both teams traded scores and turnovers in the early minutes and San Jose City led 9-8 midway through the first half as both teams struggled against each other’s defense.

Two scores by Brandon Criss, B.J. Lassiter’s airborne reverse lay-up off the dribble-drive, and Isaiah Johnson’s 3 pivot turn-arounds from the low-post helped San Jose match Monterey’s scoring through most of the first 20 minutes.

But Monterey’s James Sandoval’s early inside scoring, particularly off a strong-side, floater pass over the top of the defense to his low post that would work four times in the game, proved unstoppable. Sandoval was the game’s leading scorer with 17.

Monterey, whose record with the win is now 13-10 and 3-1 in conference, good for second place behind Cabrillo’s 4-0 conference record, led at the half 28-19.

San Jose City suffered an 11-1 run by Monterey in the first 7 minutes of the second half as the Lobos built a 19-point lead, 41-22, as Monterey was able to break San Jose’s full-court press and convert with Sandoval’s inside game and cherry picks off the press-break, Jermaine Carter’s connection from the arc, and Theo Jackson’s perimeter shot.

With 12 minutes left in the contest, San Jose City lurched into its own game tempo when B.J. Lassiter grabbed a defensive rebound and took it coast-to-coast for a lay-up. That ignited City’s steal-production (20 steals for the night) as Quinston Reggins, Isaiah Johnson, Brandon Criss, and Kenny McGowan grabbed Monterey front court passes that resulted in scores from the floor or free-throw line.

San Jose City closed the gap to 8 points, 50-42, with 3 minutes remaining in the game with a jumper by Kenny McGowan and a three-point play by Isaiah Johnson. A put-back by Lobo Michael Miller and a score by Lobo Martel Israel matched a 3-point basket by City’s Kenny McGowan in the last minute to contain the Jaguars' late game rally.

Both Reggins and Criss had 4 steals apiece; Johnson grabbed 9 rebounds and Randel and Criss both grabbed 5 rebounds.

In the last week, San Jose has slipped from a 5-game win streak to a 2-game losing streak on the road and is now 1-2 in Coast Conference-South play. The Jaguars play the next two games at home—Wednesday at 7 pm with West Valley (10-12; 2-1) and Saturday at 3 pm with Gavilan (7-16; 1-2).

(report by Charles Heimler)

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The team left their game somewhere on Highway 17 in the Santa Cruz Mountains when they traveled to Cabrillo College and managed only 12 points in the first half while watching Seahawk freshman Travess Armenta, who previously played at Ft. Lewis College and Longmont High School in Colorado, rack up six 3-point shots (18 points) in the first half.

Cabrillo (14-7, 3-0 in conference) put an aggressive full court trapping press on the Jags' from their first offensive possession, which took San Jose City out of their rhythm and led to an anemic first half offensive production, managing only 6 field goals from the floor, less than half their average.

Cabrillo continued to scramble San Jose's offense and score unabated and led 42-12 at the intermission.

San Jose City spent all but the last 2 minutes of the mid-game break huddled in the locker room trying to re-discover the elements that this week led to their #12 State ranking and #5 Northern California ranking in the Coaches' Poll.

The Jags got a bit back on track and outscored Cabrillo 30-27 in the second half as the Seahawks got all their players into the romp, leading by 30 points for most of the game.

Armenta pinged 2 more baskets from downtown in the second half to lead all scorers with 24 points--he was 8 for 10 (80%) from the arc.

San Jose City's Isaiah Johnson scored 14 of his 16 points in second half and Quinston Reggins flushed three 3-point shots for the night while netting 10 of his 13 points in the second period.

San Jose City (11-8, 1-1 in conference) travels Friday for a 7 pm game to Monterey (12-10, 2-1 in conference), who last night dominated DeAnza in a 103-85 scorefest. San Jose City beat Monterey to win last month's Holiday Classic Tournament.

(report by Charles Heimler)

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San Jose City College Men’s basketball team won its first conference game of the season against last year’s co-conference champion Hartnell College, in a game in which San Jose’s precise free throw shooting and press-and-trap defense trumped Hartnell’s precise 3-point shooting and fundamentally-sound, “Utah-style” basketball.

The first ten minutes of the game saw San Jose City and Hartnell trade the lead back and forth, and with 11 minutes left in the first half the score was tied 17-17. Hartnell’s pinpoint accurate 3-point shooting by sophomore guards Chris Romney, Kelly McCarthy, and Chris Warne powered the visitors to a 31-23 lead with 3 minutes remaining in the first half.

Then, two field goals by San Jose City’s Quinston Reggins, one of them a 3-point shot, and two field goals followed by penalty shots by San Jose City’s Isaiah Johnson, put the Jaguars back on top 34-31 with 16 clicks left on the first period clock. A three-point play by Hartnell’s freshman forward Ian Hosford sent the teams into the locker room deadlocked at 34-34.

San Jose City started the second half pressing and trapping while Hartnell’s Romney continued his run of 3 point shots, eventually draining 7 and ending the game with 25 points (7 3-PT, 1 2PT, 2FT), which kept the Salinas college team in the contest until the 13-minute mark when they led 47-44.

A 3-point basket by San Jose City’s freshman guard B.J. Lassiter tied the game and then San Jose City grabbed the lead for good on a field goal followed by a free throw by San Jose’s freshman forward Chris Randel.

A steal of a Hartnell pass by B.J. Lassiter, followed by a court-length pass to freshman guard Javin Charlot, converted to a contested lay-up, put City in the lead for good, 56-49, with 10 minutes left in the game.

San Jose City extended its lead to ten points, 71-61 with 5 minutes left in the game courtesy of two successive offensive put-backs by Lassiter.

San Jose switched to a man-to-man defense in the game’s last five minutes, which dampened Hartnell’s outside shooting.

In the game’s last 30 seconds, Lassiter grabbed another defensive rebound, hit the streaking Javin Charlot at mid-court, who then sent the ball into the paint to Kenny McGowan, who made a reverse, right-handed lay-up and subsequent trip to the free throw line for a 3-point play, putting the score at 81-68, and sealing the win for San Jose City.

Consistent free throw shooting (19 for 23, 83%) provided the margin of victory for the Jaguars, as the teams made the same number of field goals in the game. San Jose City maintained the margin at ten points until the last minute of the game based on the consistency of free throw shooty by Isaiah Johnson, who was 7 for 8 from the charity stripe. Quinston Reggins was 6 for 8 from the free throw line, and Kenny McGowan was 3 for 3.

In addition to his 21 points, Isaiah Johnson grabbed 13 rebounds.

B.J. Lassiter’s 14 points were complemented by 10 rebounds and 4 assists.

Kenny McGowan contributed 9 points and 3 assists.

Javin Charlot added 4 assists.

San Jose City College travels to its next two Coast Conference-South games, meeting Cabrillo College Wednesday night at 7:30 in Aptos and Monterey Friday/18 at 7 pm. San Jose City returns home Wednesday/23 at 7 pm against West Valley.

(Report written by Charles Heimler)

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San Jose City College almost saw a stellar first half performance in their last non-conference game of this season go to waste as Chabot (14-7) outscored the Jags in the second half to force San Jose to take back the game in overtime and win by the width of claw nail.

San Jose City came off their tournament championship a week ago energized as their defense shut down Chabot’s scoring for most of the first half. The visitors from South Alameda County managed only 6 points in the first 14 minutes of the game while San Jose City built a 14-6 lead through guard Quinston Reggins’ drives to the hoop combined with forward Tim Harrison’s free throws (5 for 6 in the first half).

Chabot rallied with 6 minutes left in the first period to come within 3, 17-14, when sophomore guard Alex Mallari found the range from 3-point land and sophomore forward Chris Woodbury hit two consecutive baskets, one a three-point play courtesy of a personal foul on City.

A basket off the dribble-drive by Kenny McGowan sparked a small resurgence for San Jose City, which was bolstered by 2 Isaiah Johnson free throws, a Johnson basket down under courtesy of an assist from Brandon Criss, and a trademark Quinston Reggins theft of a Chabot pass in the front court followed by a coast-to-coast layup. At the half, San Jose City led 28-19.

San Jose increased their lead to 11 points in the opening 3 minutes of the second half, when B.J. Lassiter, returning to the game after suffering an elbow-to-the face induced bloody nose, scored a trailer lay-up after Reggins stole another front court Chabot pass, fired to McGowan streaking downcourt, who then dished behind him to Lassiter on the trailer. At that point, it looked as if City’s defense and open court speed might make their advantage untouchable.

But San Jose’s offense sputtered as they ran up several personal fouls, turnovers resulting from dropped passes and fumbled rebounds, and a shot clock violation. Meanwhile, Chabot’s Chris Woodbury connected from inside and sophomore guard Kelvin Potts connected from outside to finally awaken Chabot’s offense, evening the score 51-51 with 2 minutes left in the game.

Reggins’ two free throws put San Jose up 53-51 in regulation time’s last minute, but they were matched by a Woodbury score on Chabot’s next possession. The game was sent into San Jose’s first overtime of the season at 53-53 when Chabot blocked a Reggins’ shot and Chabot’s Derieck Mosberg, a sophomore guard, bounced a 3 pointer off the side rim at the buzzer.

San Jose’s three field goals in overtime, 2 by Johnson and 1 by Lassiter, just edged Chabot’s two baskets and a foul shot to provide the difference in the game, which ended at 59-58 when Chabot misfired on 2 shots in the games’ last ten seconds.

Both Isaiah Johnson and Quinston Reggins grabbed 6 rebounds in the game, Brandon Criss contributed 5 rebounds, and Reggins added 4 assists.

The win helped moved San Jose City College to a #16 statewide ranking and to a #8 Northern California Ranking in the Coaches' Poll.

San Jose City opens its Coast Conference-South season in the next ten days against last year’s co-conference champions. San Jose hosts Hartnell (4-11) on Saturday, January 12 at 3 pm, and on Wednesday, January 16, travels to Cabrillo (11-7, #15 rank in Northern California) for a 7:30 tip-off.

(Game notes by Charles Heimler)

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The San Jose City College Men's Basketball Team prevailed in a see-saw, defensive struggle over Monterey Peninsula College, coached by former City assistant coach Blake Speiring, 48-43, to win the 9th annual Holiday Basketball Classic, hosted by San Jose City College at Evergreen Valley College.

San Jose City played the first half with two platoons applying a full court press, with several players contributing scores. San Jose City led 9-5 in early minutes of the first half thanks to two scores by Chris Randel, one a full-court cherry pick pass from Kenny McGowen. But at the mid-point of the first half, Monterey tied the score 9-9 courtesy of two back-to-back baskets by Adrian Hernandez, a 6-3 sophomore point guard, who has already signed a letter of intent to play next year for Tulsa.

Monterey surged to a four point lead, 17-13, with seven minutes left in the half, powered by two consecutive scores by James Sandoval, a 6-6 sophomore guard, who would later be named to the All-Tournament Team. San Jose City rallied back as forward Isaiah Johnson (Tourney co-MVP) hit two shots from the low post and Brandon Criss (All-Tournament Team) registered a tip-in and then a lay-up following a steal by guard Javin Charlot. Blocked shots by Johnson and Randel in the last minute of the half grounded Monterey’s scoring to a halt, and the half ended 24-23.

Monterey immediately surged ahead in the opening minutes of the second half, 27-25 as Sandoval hit a perimeter shot, followed by an alley-oop combination from Jermaine Carter (Seaside High School) to Theo Jackson (Palma High School). Monterey built on their momentum to lead by four points, 33-29 with 12 minutes left in the contest.

Then, forward Isaiah Johnson connected on a drive from the low post, B.J. Lassiter pinged a three-pointer, and Chris Randel put an offensive rebound back in the hole to regain the lead, 37-35 with 8 minutes left in the game.

Monterey still had one more rally left in them and grabbed the lead back with just under four minutes to play, 41-39, following a field goal by Michael Miller (Monterey High School) and a three-point score by Jermaine Carter.

With two and a half minutes left in the game, San Jose City’s Quinston Reggins (Tourney co-MVP) was fouled on a three-point shot and made the penalty for a 4-point play, putting San Jose City up 43-41. Reggins then stole a Monterey pass, Randel blocked a shot, and Kenny McGowen converted on two free throws, putting the score at 45-41 in San Jose City’s favor with 42 seconds left on the clock.

Monterey’s Denarrio Tatmon (All-Tournament Team), (Skyline High School), scored on a drive from down low putting the game score at 45-43 with 17 seconds left.

San Jose City then closed its grip on the win when Reggins made one of two foul shots following a drive from the top of the key, Johnson came out of his low-post position to block a Monterey shot, and Reggins was fouled again on a drive, netting two free throws to put the win in San Jose’s column, 48-43.

Reggins, Lassiter, Johnson, and Randel each scored three field goals, and Reggins’ 5 for 7 free throw shooting helped San Jose City’s offense. The win surpassed City’s total number of wins last season.

The San Jose City College Jaguars face Chabot College in the last pre-conference game of the season at home Saturday, January 5 at 3 pm.

San Jose City opens its Coast-South Conference season at home, Saturday, January 12, at 3 pm against Hartnell, who last year shared the conference championship with Cabrillo College, who City plays in Aptos on Wednesday, January 16, at 7:30 pm.

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The San Jose City College Jaguars met Cosumnes River College in the semi-final game of the Holiday Tournament, scoring first on a three-point basket by Javin Charlot and never looking back, leading for the duration of the contest bolstered by the scoring combination of Charlot (14 points), B.J. Lassiter (13 points), and Quinston Reggins (29 points), who together combined for 56 of City’s point total.

Based on his previous night’s performance, Javin Charlot, a freshman from Gilroy High School, earned his first start of the season, and responded with three 3 point baskets in the first half. Charlot’s outside shooting streak combined with Lassiter’s two 3 point baskets and Reggins’s 3 field goals accounted for 21 of City’s 26 first period points.

City’s trapping defense thwarted Consumnes’ offense, which netted only 16 points in the first half. The Jags bested CRC 11-2 in the second ten minutes of the first half.

CRC opened the first four minutes of the second half with a 14-10 run to decrease City’s advantage to 34-30. Two put-back scores by Isaiah Johnson and a steal by Brandon Criss stopped Cosumnes’ momentum and set City up for a 15-3 run, putting the Jags back in control of the game, as they heated up their offense to build their lead, outscoring their opponents in the second period, 59-35.

Both Brandon Criss and B.J. Lassiter had 7 rebounds in the game as the Jags controlled the boards.

City faces Monterey Peninsula College in the tournament championship Saturday, 4 pm, at Everygreen Valley College.

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City hosted Lassen College, located in the northeast California town of Susanville, in their first game of the 9th annual Holiday Tournament at its sister school Evergreen Valley College.

The Jags, who are again ranked #15 in the Coaches Northern California poll, started slowly and found themselves down 12-3 after the first four minutes of the game against Lassen, an 8-8 team that had lost its last five games after squeaking out some quality wins early in the season.

The Jags began a comeback that would eventually enable them to surge ahead 15-14 with nine minutes left in the first period with two baskets by Isaiah Johnson in the low post. City took the lead when forward Brandon Criss grabbed an offensive rebound and coverted it into a score. From that point, City kept the lead, which was only threatened once at 21-21 with six minutes left in the first half. Johnson went on another 5 point scoring streak to regain the momentum for City.

A three point play by freshman guard Alex Cowley, who two plays later stole a pass to set up two free throws by BJ Lassiter (17 points for the game) put City up 41-32 at the half.

Javin Charlot came off the bench in the second period to contribute nine points as City controlled the game, leading by 13 points, 76-63 with 3 minutes left in the contest.

Lassen made it a 9 point game with 2 minutes left on the strength of perimeter shooting by Patrick Carlson, a sophomore guard.

Lassen's last gasp expired, however, when a baseball pass the length of the court from Javin Charlot to Isaiah Johnson, who then executed a 180-degree dunk, sent the message that the game was City's to keep.

The Tournament continues at 2 pm Friday and Saturday. Teams filling out the bracket include Santa Rosa, L.A. Southwest, Monterey, Orange Coast, Cosumnes River, and Cerritos.

City meets Cosumnes River College, coached by Jag former assistant coach and player James Giacomazzi, in a semi-final game at EVC Friday at 6 pm.

Game Photos:

San Francisco (13-2) brought its #1 ranking in the state to the Jaguars’ gym on a Friday night and quickly jumped out to a 14-5 lead in the first four minutes of the game. Midway through the first half, San Francisco had compiled a 14-point advantage, 29-15, and the atmosphere of a rout permeated the air. San Francisco, its previous visit to San Jose for a tournament game resulting in a one-game suspension for rushing L.A. Trade Tech’s bench and brawling, was focused on earning its “props” this night on the court.

But then, San Jose’s offense cohered, sparked by an 8-point scoring run (two 3-pointers) by freshman Quinston Reggins. City’s defense tightened its grip and forced 3 turnovers. At the end of the half, San Jose had closed the gap to 6 points, 41-35.

The second half began much like the first half, with San Francisco moving out to an 11-point lead in the first 3 minutes. At the 15 minute mark, San Francisco led by 13, powered by 3 point shots by Roburt Sallie, a freshman from Sacramento’s Valley High, and Robert Owens, a sophomore from Oakland’s Skyline High. City’s scoring was frustrated by the inability to convert several offensive rebounds into put-back scores on a night when the baskets from the floor and especially from the free throw line just did not seem to want to fall for City, which ended the night 12 for 22 (54.5%) from the charity stripe, and 25 for 64 (39%) from the floor.

With 12 minutes left in the game, an assist from San Jose’s B.J. Lassiter to Alex Cowley for the score put new life into the Jaguar offense, which then went on a tear fueled by assists from Kenny McGowan to Quinston Reggins, Josh Grant to forward Chris Randel and two put-backs by Brandon Criss. A steal by Randel, pass to Reggins, who then scored on a lay-up brought City to within 5 points, 60-55, with 6 minutes left in the contest, and the mood in the bleachers switched from dreading a blow-out to anticipating an upset.

A 3-point score followed on the next possession by a basket off the dribble drive by Quinston Reggins brought City to within 4 points with 1 minute left in the game. A defensive rebound by Kenny McGowan set the table for City to close within one point, but an apparent jump ball that was refereed a block gave possession back to San Francisco, which ran out the clock to preserve its win. (Game notes by Charles Heimler)

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On a Tuesday night during finals week, San Jose made the short trip north on I 280 to meet Foothill College in a non-conference game. Although Foothill outscored the Jags 26-23, San Jose's 71% (25 for 35) free throw shooting was better than Foothill's, who went 9 for 13 from the free throw line. The fewer number of fouls called on City, along with their control of the boards (40-23 in rebounds) gave the advantage to City College.

Scoring by Quinston Reggins (15 points in the first period), Isaiah Johnson, and Brandon Criss staked City to a first half lead, 35-32. William "BJ" Lassiter, picked up the scoring slack in second half, contributing all of his 15 points for the game, hitting 5 of 7 free throws. Both Reggins and Johnson contributed 4 assists apiece to the offensive effort.

SJCC SCORING LEADERS

FG% Isaiah Johnson .555, Javin Charlot .476

ASSISTS Quinston Reggins 3.2/game, Kenny McGowan 2.8/game

3PT%

Javin Charlot .667, Marshawn Landrine .412

FT%

Javin Charlot .889, Kenny McGowan .865

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The Diablo Valley College Vikings, ranked 9th in the state entering this 3rd place tournament game, came off a loss to San Francisco. DVC grabbed the opening tip and immediately ran up a 9 point lead.

City's offense kicked into gear when Isaiah Johnson scored on 3 successive scores from under the basket. With the score even at 30, the two teams traded baskets and the lead through the first half, which ended with DVC leading 37-34, with the difference in play attributed to 4 3pt shots by DVC's Antonio Flaggs, who played half a year last year at Division 2 Humboldt before returning home and joining DVC for his sophomore year.

In the second half, the teams remained within 2 points of each other until Quinston Reggins scored 2 successive 3 point shots, which put City ahead to stay, 51-47 midway in the second half. Then, the Jags defense combined with key rebounds by Isaiah Johnson helped the Jags stay in control. A fake outside shot by Brandon Criss followed by an assist off the fake to Chris Randel under the basket sealed the deal at 70-67 in favor of the Jags, who closed out the last minute of play by forcing a turnover by DVC.

City's William BJ Lassiter was named to the All-Tournament team, his first such honor as a college player.

City's quality win in this game led to them getting ranked 14th in the North California Coach's poll, their first appearance in that poll in over a year.

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L.A. Trade Tech brought their junior college version of "showtime" basketball to the Jags' gym in this semi-final game of the tournament. The visitors, who play in the shadow of the Staples Center in central L.A., average over 100 points per game and four alley-oop dunks per game.

San Jose ran with L.A. for most of the first half; both teams were tied at 9 in the early minutes of play, and City was down by only one bucket, 25-23, at the 8 minute mark, creeping toward L.A. with a Brandon Criss assist pass to Isaiah Johnson for a score from the low post.

With 5 minutes left in the half, Trade Tech went on a run paced by Centennial High School's Joseph Morgan's 3 pointers. At halftime, L.A. led S.J. 39-31

Cold free throw shooting, 30 percent, and cold field goal shooting, 34 percent, stymied the City offense. The Jags were able to keep L.A. from scoring their usual 100 points.

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San Jose took the opening tip-off and Kenny McGowen made the first basket in the Jags' return to their home court. Sixty percent three point shooting in the first half sparked the Jaguar offense, paced by guards BJ Lassiter, Marshawn Landrine, and Jarvin Charlot. City led the visitors from the island city by the Bay 45-34 at the intermission.

Alameda closed within a basket 47-45 in the second half, on a 3-point basket by Kevin Johnson, a freshman from Oakland High School. Alameda's rally was stopped when City's Josh Grant, a crossover from City's football team, coverted a steal into a 2 point score, putting the score 49-45 at the 16 minute mark. From that point, the Jaguars controlled the game and stretched their lead to 14 points at one point, and went on to win.

Kenny McGowan finished with 14 points (6 for 6) from the free throw line; Marshawn Landrine had 13. Quinston Reggins contributed 6 assists. Forward Chris Randel netted 9 rebounds, 8 of them on defense.

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City led Merced 33-30 after the first half of play, but Merced outscored SJCC 34-23 in the second half to avenge their previous loss to the Jags in the San Jose City-hosted Tip-Off Tournament.

City's Marshawn Landrine, a 6'2" freshman from San Jose's Oak Grove High School, had a breakout game, scoring three 3-point shots and two free throws for 11 points.

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City College opened their first game in the James Clark Classic at Consumnes River College against Feather River College. City's Isaiah Johnson set the pace, scoring ten points in the game's first ten minutes. But the Jags found themselves trailing FRC 18-14 midway through the first half. City's 29 percent shooting versus Feather River's 57 percent in the first half put the Jags in the hole, 32-22, at the intermission.

In the second half, the Jags rallied from a 12-point deficit with 9 minutes left on the clock to tie the game, 60-60, on a perimeter shot by B.J. Lassiter, to send the game into City's first overtime game of the season.

Feather River outscored the Jags, 12-6, in overtime to win the game. Standout scores for City included B.J. Lassiter, 12, Isaiah Johnson, 11, and Tim Harrison, 10. Brandon Criss contributed 4 assists.

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Sunday night's tournament championship game matched Delta, ranked #1 in the Northern California Coaches' Poll, with San Jose City, a mostly-freshman team who are charged with restoring the winning luster this year to the men's basketball program. City had won this tournament six times, and arrived in the final bracket having run up large margins of victory in two previous tournament games. Delta also had two wins in the tournament, and entered the game carrying the laurel of having won the Tip-Off Tournament earlier this month in San Jose.

In the first half, Delta posted a lead over the Jaguars built on three-point shooting by Roman Van Allen, a 5-11 sophomore who would later be named Tourney MVP. By the end of the second half, SJCC trailed the Stockton-based college 16-33, as their offense sputtered and their defense was a step behind Delta's attack.

City came alive for a few moments in the second half that featured some offensive gems such as assists from Brandon Criss to Isaiah Johnson, who both were later named to the All Tourney team. Quinston Reggins continued to menace the opponents' offense with steals that were converted to coast-to-coast layups. And 5-11 guard Kenny McGowan, playing with a wrist brace, hustled into the paint following shots into the land of giants under the basket to score on buckets following a rebound.

City outscored Delta 36-28 in the second half, and their revitalized effort in that period overcame what at one point was a 20-point lead to close within nine. Brandon Criss with 10 points was City's second highest scorer for the night.

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San Jose City broke out of the starting blocks with the same high energy level they had exhibited the night before in a runaway win against Columbia College. Their trapping defense denied the Solano College offense, which the night before had stunned tournament host and perennial Bay 7 Conference champion Diablo Valley College 69-67.

This night, however, the Jaguars’ defense controlled the game, limiting Solano’s field goals made to 28 percent (16-57) and 3-pointers made to 22 percent (5-22).

The first ten minutes of the game were a see-saw contest between the two teams, who matched each other in the scoring column and were tied 16-16 with 5 minutes left in the first half. Freshman Kenny McGowen, who missed one game with an injury, returned in this game and put the Jaguars ahead for good with a free throw. Solano then suffered an 8-0 run at the hands of the Jaguars, and the first half closed with SJCC leading 28-21.

City’s 44-28 margin in the second half was fueled by numerous steals of Solano’s passes followed by lay-ups after the fast break transition by William “B.J” Lassiter, Quinston Reggins, Brandon Criss, and Kenny McGowen. Assists by guards Reggins and McGowen fed forwards Isaiah Johnson, Josh Grant, and Tim Harrison underneath the basket for scores. Reggins was the second leading scorer with 16 points, ten of them free throws after getting fouled on dribble-drives from the top of the key.

Over one-third (36 percent) of the Jags' points came from the free throw line---Isaiah Johnson was a perfect 6/6, Reggins 10/12, McGowen 4/6, and Charlot, a 6-0 freshman guard from Gilroy High School, was a perfect 3/3. The win put the Jaguars in Sunday’s championship game against San Joaquin Delta College, who beat City’s Coast-North Division rival Cabrillo and then Ohlone College to arrive in the final bracket matchup. Delta won the season’s opening Tip-Off Tourney on the Jaguars’ home court two weeks ago.

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Columbia built a 31-15 lead in the first ten minutes of the game on the strength of 3-point shooting. Then, the Jaguars took control of the game with effective defensive trapping. City caught and passed Columbia on a put-back by William "BJ" Lassiter at the 2 minute mark. That play cemented the momentum change of the game as the Jags outscored Columbia 24-4 in the second half of the first period, posting a 39-35 edge at intermission. Down 10 points in the first half, City woke up when Lassiter blocked a Columbia pass, Johnson scored and converted on a free throw, and Lassiter then pinged a 3 pointer, one of his three for the occasion. A Reggins drive and assist to Armstrong under the basket put the Jags ahead to stay after Lassiter grabbed a rebound witht he put-back resulting in the Jags taking the lead at 34-33. SJCC outscored Columbia 52-37 to win the game. The Jags entered the semi-final game of the tournamet by virtue of their win, facing Solano College, who sent tourney host DVC to the Consolation bracket in the night's marquee contest. Besides Lassiter, a 6-3 freshman guard from Pinole, four other Jags scored in double digits--Quinston Reggins, a 6-1 freshman guard had 19, Martin Armstrong, a 6-4 freshman from San Jose's Yerba Buena High school had 15, Isaiah Johnson, a 6-4 and lone sophomore on the squad, scored 13, and Josh Grant, a 6-4 freshman from San Jose's Oak Grove High School, scored 11.

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Skyline chipped away at City's lead through the second half and tied the game with one minute left. An ill-timed foul and a technical foul gave the game away to Skyline. The Jag's offense faltered in late in the second half when Freshman guard Kenny McGowan left injured after a collison with a Skyline player. The Jags had controlled much of the game until a 4-13 run in favor of Skyline in the last five minutes made it a contest at the end.

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The Jaguars made some adjustments and roared back in the 3rd place Tourney game. SAN JOSE TOURNEY. Champions: Delta. Second Place: Modesto. Third Place: SJCC. Consolation: Skyline. MVP: Roman Van Allen Delta; All Tourney Team ; Aaron Wilson-Delta; Benny Flores-Delta; Brian Bergerson-Modesto; Eleazar Jones-Modesto; Quinston Reggins-SJCC.......

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Modesto's front line and five returning Sophomores out-muscled the Jags in this second game of the Tip-Off Classic.

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The Jags opened their season with a win in the Tip-Off Classic Tournament.

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