Merced boys basketball routs Buhach Colony, will face Atwater for first place in CCC
If the Merced High boys basketball team wanted to make a statement Wednesday night against Buhach Colony, the Bears made it clear.
They’re going to be hard to beat in the Central California Conference.
What was expected to be a battle of two of the CCC’s top teams turned into a rout. Merced jumped out to an early lead and never looked back, to earn an impressive 76-45 win over Buhach Colony at Clemons Court.
Merced’s defense limited Buhach Colony to just four points in the first quarter to take a 15-4 lead. Merced led 33-14 at halftime and extended its lead to 33 points after three quarters.
Merced senior Valentin Vasquez led the Bears with 18 points.
The commanding victory sets up another critical CCC showdown against Atwater (3-0) on Friday night.
The Falcons edged El Capitan 54-53 on Wednesday on AJ Banks’ game-winning shot in the final seconds.
Friday’s first-place showdown will tip off at 7:15 p.m.
Here are the current CCC boys standings:
- Merced 3-0
- Atwater 3-0
- Buhach Colony 2-1
- Los Banos 1-2
- El Capitan 0-3
- Golden Valley 0-3
This story was originally published January 21, 2026 at 10:02 PM.
