The Turlock Christian boys basketball team began Tuesday night’s Sac-Joaquin Section Division VI play-in game on a 7-0 run against Stockton Christian and never looked back, The No. 8 seed, TC advanced to the first round of the bracket with a lopsided 69-30 victory over No. 9 SC.
In a battle of Eagles inside the Hughson High gymnasium, TC rode the early offensive momentum and defensive aggressiveness of junior Cam Kelley. Kelley made the first points of the contest with a three-pointer, and after a Stockton Christian timeout to momentarily stop the bleeding, contributed another five points as the TC built a 19-4 first quarter lead.
Turlock Christian also overcame an early scare from star senior Michael Miller, who after scoring a quick four points and recording a pair of steals, slipped and rolled his right ankle as he went up for a layup and momentarily left the game. Motivated to ensure his high school career did not end on the bench, Miller returned in the second quarter to finish with a game-high 21 points on a sharp 9-for-15 from the field.
“I think we all knew this could have been our last game, and we wanted to come prove something, that TC can go win playoff games,” Miller said. “I think the word ‘playoffs’ just fires everybody up. There was some adrenaline. With the ankle, it was one of those things where you roll it, walk it off, and it'll go away. It was all good.”
Kelley credited the early success with recognizing the zone defense that SC began the game with.
“Seeing them in the zone early on, I knew that the looks were going to be there, and my teammates got me those good looks by driving and kicking it out,” said Kelley, who finished with 10 points.
As Miller exited, freshman Alex Foy stepped up with six first-quarter points, ending his night with 14.
Out of the locker room with a 31-10 halftime lead, TC began feeding junior Tyler Nydam, who was called for three early fouls. With no points in the first quarter and spending most of the second period on the bench with his foul troubles, Nydam exploded in the second half, cashing in on 16 points and earning a double-double with 11 rebounds as his Eagles pulled away.
“I was just thinking, ‘Don't put your hands on them. Otherwise, I get that fourth and I'm going to be taken out again,’” Nydam said. “I wasn't too happy with how that first half went, so I wanted to just prove something.”
Of the 10 players who head coach Jacob Gregg dispatched, eight contributed to TC’s point total.
“When Tyler got in foul trouble and Michael had that scare with the ankle after he slipped, our bench really stepped up and kept things going,” Gregg said. “I’ really proud of these guys. It was a really solid effort across the board. It was a true team win.”
“It shows how selfless everybody is,” Miller added. “Everyone wants everyone to score. Everyone wants everyone to do good. I think it shows that just because they're on the bench doesn't mean they're not scoring or can’t contribute. Everybody is always ready to go.”
Turlock Christian (13-13) will now turn its attention to Saturday's road clash with top-seeded Sacramento Adventist (21-7) at 7 p.m. Saturday.
“We’ll just have to play our game,” Kelley said. “We're going to have to knock down some outside shots. I'm going to have to get to the rim, get out in transition, and we all need to play really good defense, like we usually do.”
OTHER SCORES
GIRLS D-6 PLAY-IN: No. 8 Turlock Christian 52, No. 9 Stockton Christian 27 on MON.
GIRLS D-1 PLAY IN: No. 16 Edison (Stockton) 52, No. 17 Pitman 45 on MON.
GIRLS D-3 FIRST ROUND: No. 3 West Campus (Sacramento) 64, No. 14 Hilmar 18 on TUES.
GIRLS D-5 FIRST ROUND: No. 3 John Adams (El Dorado Hills) 67, No. 14 Denair 27 on TUES.
LATER THIS WEEK
The remainder of the basketball postseason ramps Wednesday with a full slate of first round and play-in games.
BOYS D-4 FIRST ROUND: No. 15 Hilmar @ No. 2 Venture Academy (Stockton), 7 p.m. WED.
BOYS D-5 FIRST ROUND: No. 13 Denair @ No. 4 Bradshaw Christian (Sacramento), 7 p.m. WED.
GIRLS D-6 FIRST ROUND: No. 8 Turlock Christian @ No. 1 Sacramento Adventist , 7 p.m. THURS.
