Los Gatos Weekly-Times

Vikings, Jaguars ready for big basketball game

By Dick Sparrer

Basketball games don't come much bigger than this one. The top two teams in the Coast Conference--make that, two of the top teams in the state--will go head-to-head on Friday night in a key community college men's basketball game.

West Valley Community College (5-0 in the conference and 23-2 for the year) will visit San Jose City College (4-1 in the conference and 23-4 for the year) on Feb. 6, 7 p.m., in a game that will decide first place in the Coast Conference.

The clubs set up Friday's titanic by winning two games each in conference play last week.

Darrell Teat and David Wright combined for 60 points to lead West Valley to back-to-back Coast Conference victories over Foothill and Chabot.

The Vikings whipped Foothill 65-53, then pounded Chabot 99-52 to improve to 5-0 in the conference and 23-2 for the year.

Teat pumped in 15 points, and Wright and Rion Nolan (Leigh) added 13 apiece to drive the Vikes to the 12-point win over the Owls to open the week.

Wright came back with 18 points, and Teat pitched in 14 in West Valley's win over Chabot.

In other local community college basketball action, Arbatisha Kitchen tossed in 49 points in three games last week, and Cortney Keegan pitched in 41 to lead the San Jose City College women's basketball team to three straight wins.

The victories helped the Lady Jaguars improve to 7-0 in the Coast Conference and to 25-1 for the year.

Keegan opened the week with a 22-point performance in a 72-45 win over Gavilan. The 5-foot-9 freshman guard buried three three-pointers in the game.

Kitchen hit a pair of threes on her way to 13 points; Nina Vinther (Los Gatos) added 10 points; Natalia Jonas, 10; Jamila Johnson, seven; and Christina Lombardo (Leigh), five.

Kitchen came back with 22 points, including three threes, to lead the Jaguars to a 72-57 win over Ohlone. Vinther pitched in 14 points, Jonas 13 and Keegan nine.

San Jose capped the week with a lopsided 85-41 win over the City College of San Francisco. Kitchen fired in 14 points to lead a balanced scoring attack for the Jags.

Vinther and Kristie Reed hit 11 apiece; Keegan, Jonas and Tami Monson, 10 each; and Lombardo and Johnson, five apiece.

The Lady Jaguars will host Chabot on Feb. 4, 7 p.m., before visiting San Mateo on Feb. 6, 7 p.m., in conference play.

Over at De Anza Community College, Bernadette Suffle poured in 21 points, and Kerri Dunn (Presentation) added 14 to lead the Dons to a lopsided 81-57 win over Gavilan last week. The Lady Dons improved to 6-2 in the Coast Conference and to 21-7 for the year with the victory.

Suffle buried three three-pointers on her way to the 21-point night and Dunn jammed seven field goals to account for all of her 14 points. Laura Raffaelli (Los Gatos) supported with 12 points, and Jane Riley (Westmont) added 11.

Riley had jammed 19 points earlier in the week to lead the Dons to an 82-48 win over Cabrillo. Stephanie Harris added 14 points for De Anza, and Suffle and Raffaelli hit 13 apiece.

[ Back to Contents Page | Los Gatos Weekly-Times Home Page | Archives ]