In a matchup of 6-foot-8 centers, it was 5-10 guard Daniel Wyatt who came through in a big way for Sierra in its McDonald’s Classic opener Wednesday at Delta College.

Wyatt scored all seven of his points in the fourth quarter, as the Timberwolves fended off Bethel of Vallejo 51-47 to remain undefeated.

Sierra (3-0) held the Jaguars (2-3) to single-digit scoring in three quarters but was outscored 22-10 in the third. Anchored by its sturdy center Gabe Martinez, Bethel was able to take a six-point lead at one point in the fourth after trailing 27-16 at halftime.

“We should have been up by more,” Sierra coach Scott Thomason said. “In the last couple minutes (of the second quarter) we had a 14- or 15-point lead and then came out flat in the second game. It’s the second game in a row we’ve done that. Some of their guards hit some tough 3s and we were struggling to get the offense going.”

Down four, Sierra got a pivotal 3-point bucket from Wyatt, who later dropped in a floater in the lane to give the Timberwolves a one-point lead.

“We had to grind it out at the end,” Thomason said. “We showed some resiliency. It was a good overall win for us.”

Sierra’s frontcourt did much of the scoring. Hunter Johnson led the way with 14 points, Jess Spivey had 12 and 6-8 Sacramento State-bound Joshua Patton chimed in with 11.

Sierra faces Chavez tonight starting at 6:30. With the Delta College campus closed, all second- and third-round games will take place at Edison High.



GIRLS

Ripon 41, Turlock 38

The host Indians (3-2) overcame a 13-point halftime deficit with an 18-5 run in the third quarter. Jill Jamero sank key free throws late to seal it and finished with eight points.

The player of the game was Zaire Davis, who amassed 17 points and 20 rebounds. Hailey Monroe and Melanie Ulrich each had six points.



Weston Ranch 65, Modesto 24

On Tuesday, the Cougars (2-0) raced out to a 27-5 first-quarter lead before putting it on cruise control.

Elisabeth Alexander collected 15 points, eight rebounds and six assists. Patricia King also had 15 points to go with seven steals. Victoria Gulley and Jyriaynna King turned in 13 and 11 points, respectively.

Weston Ranch competes in the 37th Annual Amos Alonzo Stagg Tony Contreras Delta Queen Classic starting tonight against Atwater.



Sophomore boys

Lathrop 57, Ripon 50

The Spartans (3-2) outlasted Ripon in overtime in Tuesday’s nonleague contest.

Idou Olaleye helped carry the load for Ripon, as he hauled down 23 rebounds to go with a game-high 14 points. Ariz Bringas scored 11 points, and Michael Mills fired 10.

Lathrop (3-2) travelled to Ripon to play the Indians. The game  went to OT with the Spartans of Lathrop outscoring Ripon 10-3. The final score was 57-50.

Zach Hansen paced the Indians with 13 points. Brendan Fugit and Rhet Herrin chipped in 10 and nine, respectively.



Sophomore boys

Manteca 56,
Bret Harte 32

Justin Kakala pumped in 13 points, while Eddie Santos added nine points and 11 rebounds to help the Buffaloes improve to 5-1 on Tuesday.