Comets continue streak, capsize Mariners 58-37

KENTFIELD — Superior speed and athleticism on the defensive side of the ball manifested in the Comets 58-37 win over College of Marin's men's basketball team here Friday.

Recently ranked No. 13 in Northern California, the Comets (18-8 overall, 9-3 in the Bay Valley Conference) finished regular conference play extending their season-high winning streak to seven games after demolishing the Mariners (10-16, 4-8 BVC).

CCC holds the No. 3 spot going into the conference tournament.

The Comets host Los Medanos College on Tuesday at 7 p.m. If Contra Costa College wins, the team will meet the winner of the game between Mendocino and Napa Valley colleges tonight.

"I think we have a chance to do well (in the tournament) if we continue doing what we've been doing," CCC coach Miguel Johnson said.  

"What's important for us is getting this first win (against LMC)," he said. "This will be the third time we'll play them, we're looking for a dogfight and we want to be prepared."

Johnson said the team's defensive prowess could be attributed to preparation against the Mariners on Friday.

"We're going through the second round of conference play," Johnson said. "We looked at film, noticed who their scorers are and came up with a plan to go against their attack.

"We've been playing (man-to-man) defense all year, most teams begin the season playing zone," Johnson said. "Our energy and athleticism helps us a lot defensively."

COM was held to 16 first-half points en route to its double-digit loss. The Mariners biggest issue was ball control, evident in their 16 turnovers.

Guard Robert Ellis, who finished with 12 points, five rebounds and two steals, currently leads the BVC in steals, averaging 2.9 per game.

"We were all talking before the game," the sophomore said. "I told (the team), ‘Let's set the tone early with the defense and that will carry over to our offense.'"

"We're trying to keep winning," Ellis said. "We're in the conference tournament and our goal is to win two games, go to the championship and take it from there."

CCC was able to control the game with its dribble penetration and a solid performance from forward Isaac Jackson.

Jackson finished with a game-high 14 points along with six rebounds and a steal.

"Coming off of our last game, we just wanted to come out here and get it done," he said.

CCC dominated the inferior Mariners squad from the outset. With 5:01 remaining in the first half, CCC held a 22-7 lead.

Though COM fought back to shrink the Comet lead to 10 by halftime, CCC continued its dominate ways during the last 20 minutes of play.

"We played them before so we knew what to expect," Comet guard Kenonte Ramsey said.

CCC lost its focus at the end of the first half, Ramsey said, however, Johnson motivated the squad to reclaim its control in the second.

Ramsey said, "(Johnson) told us we needed to come out in the second half refocused in order to walk away with the win."