Chico defeats Shasta to make section finals

HIGH SCHOOL BOYS BASKETBALL

Panthers set up rematch with rival PV

Shasta High’s Cooper Yonge (12) fouls Chico’s Rashad Samuels (2) in the fourth quarter of a Northern Section Division III semifinal game on Wednesday in Chico. Samuels finished with 24 points. RICK SILVA — RED BLUFF DAILY NEWS

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By Justin Couchot

jcouchot@chicoer.com

CHICO >> The No. 2 seed Chico High and No. 3 Shasta boys basketball teams entered Wednesday’s Northern Section Division III semifinals knowing a win meant a berth to the NSCIF championship, and a loss was likely the end of one team’s season.

The two teams exchanged leads five times in the first quarter, but when the Panthers got a lead with 1 minute and 40 seconds remaining in the first quarter they would not led that up for the remainder of the game.

Chico High defeated Shasta 59-46 Wednesday night at The Pit at Chico High and advanced to the NSCIF D-III championship, where they will face No. 1 seed Pleasant Valley.

“A lot of credit (to Shasta). Those kids played really hard,” said Chico High coach Abraham Simmons after the game. “They’re very well disciplined, they run their offense very well, they play extremely hard defensively and smart. Chico High played hard also. It’s what you’d expect when your season is on the line. It’s win or go home and I think both teams sensed that. It was a great atmosphere and a lot of credit to both teams.”

With the Panthers having a size advantage led by 6-foot-7 center Brendan Finney and 6-foot-4 center Landon Kobz, Shasta was fronting players in the post and switching defenders which opened up the shooting for the Panthers’ guards. Chico point guard Rashad Samuels, a senior, took advantage of that in the first half by making three 3 pointers and finishing the first half with 15 points.

“Rashad took advantage of that, he picked his shots, he shot it and he shot it really well. Tonight it was rolling,” Simmons said.

Samuels finished with 24 points. Teammate Phil Bernardez finished with 10 points, Finney had seven points and Odin Nielsen had seven points.

The Panthers scored 12 of their 18 points in the first quarter on four 3 pointers, finishing the game with six three pointers — all in the first half.

After leading 18-13 after the first quarter, the Panthers opened the second quarter on a 7-0 run to take their biggest lead of the first half at 25-13 with 5:55 left until halftime after back-to-back 3 pointers by Samuels and Rashad Young-Thomas. That was the start of runs by both teams for the final three quarters.

Shasta went on a 7-0 run of its own to trim the lead to 25-20, but the Panthers extended their lead to 31-22 at halftime as Samuels scored the six points of the half on three straight layups.

Chico opened the second half just like it opened the second quarter, taking its biggest lead of 15 points at 39-24 with 3:18 left in the third quarter. Again, the Wolves fought back trimming the lead to 43-33 at the end of three quarters.

The Wolves were determined not to give up, opening the fourth quarter on a 5-0 run to trim the Chico lead to 43-38. Chico responded with a 6-0 run to increase its lead to 11 points, later leading by 15 points once again with 1:20 raining in the game.

Samuels made 5-of-6 free throws in the fourth quarter to seal the victory for the Panthers, as Simmons reinforced to his team the need to get to the rim.

Next up the Panthers (21-7) will face off against Pleasant Valley (26-4) at 6 p.m. Friday at Butte College in the NSCIF D-III championship. The Panthers will look to snap a streak of five straight NSCIF titles for their cross-town rival Pleasant Valley.

Admission is $10 for adults, $6 for seniors and $5 for students with a valid student ID. Following the boys game the Chico and Pleasant Valley girls basketball teams will face off for the NSCIF D-III girls championship at 7:45 at Butte College.