MODESTO — Manteca prepared for No. 2 Beyer’s stifling press defense and anticipated a high-paced affair in their Sac-Joaquin Section Division III second-round contest on Friday.
“It was the complete opposite of what we expected,” Manteca coach Brett Lewis said.
The 10th-seeded Buffaloes expected an upset victory and came up short, 49-47. Jorge Cedano missed a contested shot in the lane with under 10 seconds remaining, and Jordan Burciaga nearly came up with the offensive rebound but fumbled it away.
“That’s exactly how the night went for us,” Lewis said. Manteca (13-16) struggled to get shots to fall, with several point-blank attempts rimming in and out.
The Patriots (19-10) had a chance to ice it at the free-throw line but missed the front end of a one-and-one with three seconds to go. Manteca couldn’t get a shot off before the buzzer.
Cedano led Manteca with 16 points, Gino Campiotti added 15 and Michael Ballard tallied 10. Campiotti and Burciaga also grabbed nine rebounds apiece.
Beyer, a team that averages 66.5 points per game, also had its struggles. Ben Pollack paced the Patriots with 14 points. The two teams previously met on Dec. 6, with Beyer racing to an 84-69 win.
“We did everything we could, we just couldn’t make a layup,” Lewis said. “Holding a team like that to 49 points is a huge accomplishment, but a couple breaks went against us and you have to play a great game to beat a No. 2 seed.”
Beyer squares off with sixth-seeded Rio Americano in the semifinal round next Wednesday.
Division IV
Weston Ranch 63, West Campus 60
SACRAMENTO — In a night of upsets in this bracket, No. 5 Weston Ranch (19-10) nearly came away as the highest-seeded team remaining before the No. 4 Warriors (21-7) overcame an 11-point deficit in the final three minutes to live another day.
The visiting Cougars led for most of the game and carried a 47-37 advantage into the final period.
“We couldn’t sustain our fundamentals at the end of the game,” Weston Ranch coach Chris Teevan said. “It was a microcosm of how our season went. The inconsistency just wore us out, but you also have to credit West Campus.”
Makhi Turner and Devin Small led Weston Ranch with 17 and 15 points, respectively.
West Campus moves onto the semifinals and squares off with No. 9 Foothill — which stunned top-seeded Sonora, 73-63 — next Wednesday. On the other half of the bracket, No. 10 Calaveras toppled No. 2 Liberty Ranch 73-62 and gets No. 6 Placer.
