Corsair’s Late Rally Comes Up Short in Playoff Loss to Saddleback College
The calendar may have said “February”, but there was no shortage of madness Wednesday night in the Corsair gym at Santa Monica College (SMC). The Corsairs (16-12, 9-5) entered the contest as the 13 seed in the 3C2A Southern California Regional Playoff and faced off against 20 seed Saddleback College (15-13, 8-8) in the first round of the tournament. The Corsairs were led by Malik Bray, who was named interim head coach in early January, after previous head coach Joshua Thomas was placed on administrative leave. From that point on, Coach Bray helped get the Corsairs into playoff form, and they came into the game riding a 3-game winning streak.
It was immediately clear that both teams were well-prepared for the win or go home mentality of a playoff basketball game, as each offense took turns trading blows throughout the first half. The Corsairs utilized excellent ball movement to open up lanes for cutters and drives to the basket, as well as isolated post ups for freshman power forward, David Solomon. Defensively however, SMC was in a 2-3 zone for the majority of the first half, which Saddleback was able to counter by reversing the ball from side to side and getting into the middle of the Corsair zone, resulting in plenty of open shots for the Bobcats. Saddleback was able to capitalize on those opportunities, shooting 7 of 18 from three and 54% overall from the field in the first half. With the Corsairs making only 1 of 11 from downtown, the three point shooting would prove to be the difference in the first half, and the Corsairs went into the locker room trailing 35-41.
Following some halftime adjustments from Coach Bray, the Corsairs made the switch to a man-to-man defense, in an effort to limit the effectiveness of Saddleback’s three-point shot. This change proved to be successful, as the Corsairs were able to limit Saddleback to just 1 of 3 from behind the arc in the second half. Saddleback made a few adjustments of their own, turning to forward John McFadden to pick up the slack from inside the paint. McFadden had 13 points and 7 rebounds after halftime, and he finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds.
Offensively, the Corsair’s three-point woes continued, going 1 for 8 in the final frame. Regardless, SMC battled hard to stay in the game, using the offensive glass and opportune defense to always keep it within reach. However, every time SMC was able to cut the lead down to a basket or two, McFadden was able to make a big play and prevent the Corsairs from taking the lead.
With four minutes left to play, and their season hanging in the balance, SMC found themselves down 60-67. The Corsairs refused to yield though, following a couple three pointers from Raymond Watts and Jahveon Medearis, Brooklyn Caldwell made a tough layup and was fouled. After Caldwell nailed the free throw, the Corsairs found themselves down 70-71 with 40 seconds left. Both teams traded putbacks on their ensuing possessions, and the Corsairs quickly fouled to extend the game. After two made free throws, the Corsairs got the ball back with 4 seconds left, trailing 72-75, and a chance to send the game to overtime. Coming out of a timeout, Coach Bray drew up the perfect play, but a mishandled pass prevented Raymond Watts from getting a clean look as time expired, resulting in an unpredictable end to the Corsair’s season.
The Corsairs were led by freshman guards Raymond Watts, who finished with 14 points on 7/16 shooting; and Thomasi Gilgeous-Alexander, who stuffed the stat sheet with 8 points, 9 boards, 5 assists, 3 steals and a block. Freshman point guard Mike Hill and freshman forward Jason Hillard also made solid contributions off the bench, chipping in 10 and 6 points respectively. As a team, the Corsairs grabbed 20 offensive rebounds and ended the game with a +13 total rebound margin, which was a big part of what allowed them to stay within striking distance throughout the game.
Ultimately, Saddleback was able to use their hot three-point shooting to build a lead in the first half, and maintained it by getting to the foul line much more than the Corsairs in the second half. SMC finished the season with a 16-13 record, while Saddleback improved to 16-13 and advanced to face Chaffey College in the second round of the 3C2A Southern California Regional Playoff.
The Corsairs enter the offseason facing some uncertainty as to who will be the head coach next season. According to Athletic Director Reggie Ellis, “[SMC officials] still need to make a decision regarding the status of [previous head coach Joshua Thomas] before determining the next steps.'' Mr. Ellis declined to comment on the reason for Coach Thomas being placed on leave, and was unable to give a timeline for when these decisions could be made.
