The playoff run for the Long Beach City College women's basketball team continues on Wednesday night (Mar. 6) when the Vikings will travel to face a familiar foe.
No. 8 seeded Long Beach will take on No. 1 seed and undefeated Mt. San Antonio College in Round 3 of the CCCAA Southern California Regional Playoffs in Walnut. Game time is set at 7:30 p.m. following Mt. SAC's men's playoff basketball contest.
Long Beach is now 24-4, tying the school record for wins, and has won six straight. The Vikings look to keep their state championship hopes alive against a defending state champion Mt. SAC team that is 30-0 this season and is on a 36-game winning streak dating back to last year.
The two squads met twice in South Coast Conference action this season with the Mounties taking both contests. LBCC nearly snapped Mt. SAC's winning streak on January 4 at the Hall of Champions Gym but ultimately lost 52-48.
The Vikings were up 25-21 at halftime and led 40-34 with five minutes left in the contest. But LBCC turnovers and missed shots allowed the Mounties back into the game. Mt. SAC finally took the lead for good with 1:25 left in the contest to survive the scare.
Mt. SAC head coach Brian Crichlow had high praise for Vikings following his squad's narrow win.
"That's a (state) final four team," Crichlow told David Felton of the Long Beach Press-Telegram after the game. "They have all the pieces, and they're going to improve."
Talia Rayford was outstanding for LBCC in the loss, scoring 19 points to go with 10 rebounds, three steals, three assists and two blocks. She gave the Vikings a consistent inside scoring threat and played outstanding interior defense along with forward Kaaron King (six points, six blocks, three steals).
The second meeting between the two teams on February 6 was a completely different contest. Mt. SAC jumped out to a 13-4 lead and was up 31-14 with four minutes left in the first half. Long Beach never really got its game plan going and lost 78-51.
King (15 points, 10 rebounds) and Rayford (12 points, 11 rebounds) both had double-doubles but the Vikings struggled to shoot just 25 percent (17 for 68) from the field.
Wednesday night's game could all come down to shooting for the Vikings. While their defense has been solid all year, Long Beach combined to shoot just 29 percent (73 of 245) in their four losses this season. Friday's second-round playoff win saw LBCC shoot 44 percent from the field (30 of 69) which helped lead to the Vikings' big 75-41 win over Canyons.
Regardless, expect a high intensity game between the two squads at the Mounties' gym on Wednesday. Tickets for this Wednesday's playoff game can be purchased at the door and are $8 for adults and $5 for Students (with ID), Children (5-12), Seniors (55+) and Staff (with ID).
The winner advances to Round 4 of the SoCal Regionals and will take on either No. 4 Los Angeles Valley College or No. 5 San Bernardino Valley College. An upset by the Vikings would put them on the road for the March 9 contest. Two more victories advances Long Beach to the CCCAA Basketball State Championships on March 16-17 at Cosumnes River College in Sacramento.
Photo by John Fajardo