Entering the Elite Eight of the California Community College Athletic Association State Championship in Walnut, Butte College had faced all the quarterfinalists except two. Long Beach City College joined the list of the vanquished Thursday when the Roadrunners rolled to an 84-60 victory. The other blank slate, Glendale Community College, will find its fate in Saturday’s semifinals.
Butte (30-1), top-ranked and in its third straight Elite Eight, and Glendale (29-2) tip off at 1 p.m. at Mount San Antonio College. The winner will advance to the final — which the Roadrunners reached last season — Sunday at 1 p.m. against the winner between Moorpark College (28-3) and defending state champion Orange Coast College (28-3).
First-time semifinalist Glendale had a closer quarterfinal that Butte, which led wire to wire. The Vaqueros built a 23-point lead in the third quarter before holding off Folsom Lake College 66-57.
“I watched film on (GCC) before coming down here, knowing they might be a matchup, and watched them play in person,” Butte head coach Tyler Newton said by phone after the quarterfinals. “They’re a very good ballclub; they’re very disciplined. We’re both really good shooting teams, play hard on defense and move the ball well.
“We’re going to have our hands full, for sure.”
Both teams are riding extended win streaks — 27 straight for Butte, 24 straight for GCC. They rank third and fourth in the state, respectively, in three-point shooting (43.7% to 42.6%). A key statistical difference is scoring: the Roadrunners ranking third at 81 points per game, the Vaqueros 40th at 65 ppg.
GCC’s top players had breakout performances in the quarters. Leading scorer Malia Ulery, a freshman guard, dropped 25 points, nearly doubling her season average (14.5); and freshman forward Osanna Tirityan contributed 24 points and 13 rebounds, also around double her average (11.1 ppg, 7.6 rpg).
“They gave up the lead and had a little foul trouble,” Newton observed, “but that’s to be expected. First round, you get up 20 points, you kind of take your foot off the gas, the other team battles back — those things happen.
“We got sloppy in the middle (of the quarterfinal game) as well. They held on; they’re very well coached.”
The Roadrunners played per usual with frequent substitutions, a fast pace and balanced scoring. Freshman guard Morgan Trigueiro scored 10 of her 14 points in the first half; she leads the team at 15.7 a game. Fellow freshmen Jocelyn Medina and Campbell Vieg rounded out the starting backcourt with 17 and 13 points, respectively; Medina added 10 rebounds, Vieg six assists.
“I never question (if) my kids play hard; we always compete, always play hard,” Newton said. “I’ve told them since the first day they were with me, ‘If you want to win at the highest levels, you’ve got to play hard with the execution and the smarts. Just because you’re running around and breathing hard doesn’t mean you’re taking care of business.’
“The ‘play hard’ is an expectation at this point. Now it’s (whether) we play hard and play good.
“I’m very proud of my group. We always give everything we’ve got. In order to win it all, you’ve got to play hard and execute for 40 minutes, and that’s what our goal is.”
All-State
Four members of the Butte College program received all-state honors announced in conjunction with the Elite 8.
Morgan Trigueiro made the first team, while Campbell Vieg and Jocelyn Medina made the second team. Tyler Newton got Northern California coach of the year for the second time in three years — on his fourth nomination in seven seasons at Butte.
Laney freshman guard Jada Hunter was chosen player of the year for Northern California; for Southern California, Mt. SAC freshman guard/forward Daisia Mitchell was player of the year.
CCCAA Championship
Semifinals
Butte College vs. Glendale Community College
1 p.m. Saturday
Mount San Antonio College, Walnut
Livestream: baosn.tv/cccaa
