Buhach Colony falls flat at Pitman in CCC boys basketball

After defeating Turlock earlier in the week, Buhach Colony High School boys basketball coach John Bliss couldn’t have been happier with his team.

Bliss felt the Thunder played one of its best games of the season, especially on the defensive end.

The drive home from Turlock wasn’t as enjoyable Friday night. Pitman dominated the Thunder on its way to a 65-42 win.

“They outplayed us, pretty much in every phase of the game,” Bliss said. “They outrebounded us. They outhustled us. It was disappointing, to say the least. We didn’t come to play.”

Buhach Colony (11-15, 5-4 Central California Conference) struggled to score. The Thunder shot 15 of 54 from the floor and made just 4 of 25 from beyond the three-point line.

Jeremy Sicarios scored 17 points and was Buhach Colony’s only player with more than six.

The Pride (14-8, 7-2) took control with an 11-0 run midway through the second quarter to open a 30-16 lead.

Pitman continually beat the Thunder press for baskets and executed its half-court sets as Buhach Colony players repeatedly lost site of their defensive assignments, leading to easy baskets.

“We didn’t have enough ball pressure in the first and second quarters in our press,” Bliss said. “We were a bit better in the third quarter. That’s why we played better, but you’ve got to have ball pressure or they’re just going to dissect the press.”

The Thunder fought hard to get back into the game in the third quarter, forcing Pitman into eight turnovers. Buhach Colony twice cut the lead to six , but the Pride got a three-point play from Dom Von Waaden with 44 seconds left and a buzzer beater by Christian Cooley to extend the lead to 48-37 heading into the fourth quarter.

“We worked hard in the third quarter, but we couldn’t convert a bucket,” Bliss said. “We couldn’t cash in any steals for baskets or turn fouls into points at the free-throw line.”

The Pride put away the game in the fourth quarter, outscoring Buhach Colony 17-5. As the deficit grew, Buhach Colony went to a steady diet of three-point attempts but made just 1 of 11 in the quarter.

Despite the loss, the Thunder still holds a one-game lead over Merced for third place and the final playoff spot with one game left.

It’s unclear whether Buhach Colony has already clinched a playoff spot because it would hold a tiebreaker over Merced thanks to the Thunder’s win over Turlock.

Bliss said he thought if Merced and Buhach Colony end in a tie for third that they would flip a coin for the playoff spot because the Bears and Thunder split their head-to-head games.

Buhach Colony can clear up all the confusion with a win against Atwater on Wednesday in regular-season season finale. The Thunder knows if it wins, it’s in the playoffs.

Merced 56, Atwater 54 in Merced – A.J. Stewart scored 24 points as the Bears (13-12, 4-5 CCC) earned a season sweep over the Falcons (11-14, 3-6).

Kyle Anaya made four three-pointers and scored 27 points for the Falcons. Juan Walle had 22 points for Atwater, which needed to a win to keep its playoff hopes alive.

Jared Pazin scored 13 points for the Bears.

Turlock 51, Golden Valley 34 in Turlock – The Bulldogs clinched a share of the CCC title with the victory over the Cougars. It’s Turlock’s second consecutive championship. Oscar Moreno led Turlock with 10 points.

Mariposa 76, Le Grand 37 in Mariposa – Dalton Rockwood’s game-high 16 points helped the Grizzlies (18-4, 10-0 Southern League) remain undefeated in league play.

Fernando Aguilar paced the Bulldogs (5-16, 3-7) with 15 points.

This story was originally published February 5, 2016 at 11:53 PM with the headline "Buhach Colony falls flat at Pitman in CCC boys basketball."