Japanese teams impress Merced College Blue Devils

Less than two minutes into Wednesday afternoon's exhibition scrimmage, the Merced College men's basketball players knew they were going to have to scrap plan A.

The Keio High School basketball team hadn't made the almost 5,500-mile trip from Japan just to mess around.

Ryuto Gonda made a strong move to the hoop and sank in a basket while drawing a foul.

Kohei Nakamura followed with an offensive rebound and score that -- ever so briefly -- gave the Keio kids and early one-point lead.

"We wanted to come out and put on a show," MC sophomore Steven Diaz admitted with a grin. "At one point we talked about how we really needed to start playing.

"They're impressive. They're quick, they hustle, they shoot well and they're strong for high school kids."

The 35 players from Keio that made the trip split up into two squads, with the varsity team taking on MC's sophomores and the rest going up against one of Merced College's basketball classes.

The games consisted of two 20-minute halves with a running clock and no score keeping.

Despite giving away quite a bit of size and experience, the Keio players showed no intimidation in taking on the Blue Devils.

With a well executed offense, the ability to shoot and a ton of quickness, the Keio squad certainly had MC's players on their toes.

"Those kids are good," MC forward Nick Guzman said. "They remind me of Fresno City a little bit, because they're so quick.

"The whole thing is a lot of fun."

Wednesday's scrimmage was just a small part of the fun for head coach Hiroaki Sakaguchi and his players.

"Tuesday we saw the Lakers play the Warriors and last night we went to the Kings game," Sakaguchi said. "This weekend we're going to an NCAA tournament game, so they're getting a good introduction to American basketball."

Merced College has had a long running exchange program with schools in Japan.

A number of them have come to the college for athletic training and most recently, Miki Shido starred as a setter for the Lady Devil volleyball team.

With that history in mind, MC Vice President of Student Personnel Anne Newnins and Youth English Services President Shuji Yamamuchi helped bring the Keio squad to the campus.

"We have an international students' program here at Merced College and have developed a number of partnerships with schools and universities in Japan. What we're finding is a lot of them would like to come over and get involved in our athletic programs," Newnins said. "Whether it's athletic training or playing on teams, there's a lot of interest.

"Keio High School is one of the most prestigious schools in Japan and their basketball team makes a biannual trip out to the United states.

"They got a tour of the campus today. It's just a great opportunity for them to see what the American community college experience is all about.

Wednesday's games were the first in what Newnins said could be a number of exchanges with Japanese teams.

A semi-pro baseball team is already set to come train and play with the MC baseball team this summer.

Sakaguchi said that for his players, the opportunity is priceless.

"The kids were very excited to come and train and play at the college," Sakaguchi said. "It's something they'll always remember."

Sean Lynch is a Sun-Star sports writer. He can be reached at 385-2476 or via e-mail at slynch@mercedsun-star.com.