Citrus’ men’s basketball team punched their ticket to the third round of the 3C2A playoffs after a defensive battle and 80-75 win over Pasadena City College.
In a game that could only be described as a dogfight, Citrus was held to only 80 points. Their lowest amount since beating MiraCosta College 80-69 back in November 2024.
“At the end of the day it’s survive and advance, get to the next round,” assistant coach Mark Carbone said. “It’s the playoffs, we’re going to be playing good teams, and we have to be able to take, throw and deliver punches for a 40 minute effort.”
Citrus guard Brady Cook was vital when points were hard to come by, drawing six fouls and going 10-13 from the freethrow line.
“I was just trying to be strong, having two feet in the paint, play with patience and be strong with the ball,” Cook said. “I was just trying to stay focused, even though I missed some I just have to get back in the gym and work on it. No more misses.”
Along with Cook, Citrus guard Tyler Isaak was on fire, contributing nine points to a massive 11-0 point run the Owl’s had midway through the second half.
To couple with the scoring run, Isaak dropped 21 points, going 9-13 from the field while knocking down three triples.
“I just trust in my work, all the reps I put in all summer,” Isaak said. “Shoot with confidence and shoot through misses.”
In addition to Isaak’s scoring run, the whole team turned it on for the second half, with their combined field goal, three point and free throw percentage increasing 18.47% from the first half.
Assistant coach Jeriko Santos said this team surge wasn’t just a fluke.
“PCC (Pasadena City College) does a good job at trying to slow the pace down, and obviously our style of play is we want to get up and down,” Santos said. “So the message tonight was to step up and that’s what we did tonight.”
With Citrus moving on, they are now set to face 23-9 Cypress College in the third round of the C32A playoffs.
The game is scheduled to take place at 7 p.m. Mar. 8 at Citrus.
More information about the game can be found here.
