All Entries Tagged With: "Basketball"

Online Extra: Pieroway returns, Soto out as baseball coach

By James Kelley

Pima Community College head men’s basketball coach Karl Pieroway will return to the school after a two week absence as a full time coach, along with women’s head basketball coach Todd Holthaus in a dramatic restructuring of the athletic department.

Executive Director of Athletics Edgar Soto will also step down as baseball head coach to focus on managing the athletic department.

Pieroway coached the Aztecs for two seasons, but resigned last month, citing the stress of balancing his workload as a full time middle school teacher with coaching duties.

“This is a great opportunity for me. I appreciate the chance to continue to work with the players in making our team one of the up-and-coming programs in the nation,” Pieroway said in a press release.

Check AztecPressOnline.com this summer for coaching updates.

Pieroway resigns as men’s basketball head coach

By Daniel Gaona

It came as a shock to the Pima Community College men’s basketball team when head coach Karl Pieroway resigned from his position.

The second-year coach was unavailable for comment regarding his resignation.

According to an April 20 PCC press release, Pieroway talked about the stress of coaching basketball and also being a full-time math teacher in a letter to Edgar Soto, the executive director of athletics. He gave that as the main reason for his departure.

“I could not be more proud of the players and coaches who have worked so hard to achieve so much over a short period of time,” Pieroway said in his letter to Soto.

After going 10-20 in his first year at Pima, Pieroway this year led the Aztecs to a 20-16 season and their first trip to nationals, where Pima placed seventh.

Soto said that Pieroway will be missed but Pima is thankful at the same time that he put the program where it is now.

“Coach Pieroway took the college’s men’s basketball program to a new level of success,” he said in the press release.

Travares Peterson, one of Pieroway’s star players, was stunned about his resignation.

“It came as a shock, I’m not going to lie,” Peterson said. “Especially after a year we had like last year. I don’t really know the reason or anything. Until everyone figures out what’s going on, we can’t really comment on it much.”

Peterson, a sophomore, enjoyed playing under Pieroway for two seasons.

“He was a good coach, a cool coach,” he said. “He was a good guy and I just wish him the best.”

There is no word on who will take over as head coach but an immediate search is under way, according to the press release.

Keep checking AztecPressOnline.com for updates.

Maracigan satisfied with past, primed for future

After enduring her fifth knee surgery and playing the year with a broken wrist, Pima Community College hoops standout Abyee Maracigan has become the epitome of a warrior.

Dedication and perseverance describe the 5-foot-10-inch player’s work ethic, but factors that kept Maracigan on the basketball court go beyond words.

“My family, my team and my coaches are what pushed me to be a part of something so amazing,” she said about her career. “I didn’t want to miss out on it and, if anything, it has made me love the game so much more, and learn so much more.”

Possibly her closest teammate at Pima is Tia Morrison, who thinks highly of Maracigan.

“She’s tough,” Morrison said. “She tore her ACL like three times, twice on one knee and recently on the other and had some meniscus surgeries. She’s my hero, she came back and busted ass after every surgery. Nothing can stop her and I admire that so much.”

The most recent injury came in the region championship game on the Aztecs’ home court. Silence took over after Maracigan went down. After the game, her spirits were high and she guaranteed she’d play at nationals, which she did.

Abyee Maracigan

However, she didn’t make it past the first game. That’s when she realized it was time for another surgery.

Despite the injuries, she has been a proven winner since she first stepped foot on the court.

Maracigan helped lead Flowing Wells High School to two state championship games in her high school career, one of which the Caballeros won.

She continued her successful career when she accepted a scholarship to play for the Aztecs in 2008. Her experience has been nothing short of “amazing,” she said.

“I couldn’t have asked for a better place to play or a better team to be a part of,” Maracigan said. “These were the best two years of my life. Just being able to play with my sisters and being able to play in front of my family has meant everything to me.”

From her first day, she helped a once lowly Aztec team that had seen limited success become not only a regional power but a national one as well.

“She knows how to win,” said Todd Holthaus, Pima’s women’s basketball head coach. “Her attitude is infectious. She’s a glue kind of a player, she’s just a winner of a kid.”

When they arrived as freshmen, Maracigan and Morrison quickly connected.

“We’re both competitors,” Morrison said. “We both want to win, and we definitely do what we can to make sure we win.”
“Me and her are really good friends on and off the court. That gives us good chemistry. She’s just fun to be around and she keeps that mentality on the court.”

During Maricigan’s two years at Pima, she averaged 12.4 points, just over seven rebounds and four assists per game. Those numbers earned her scholarship offers to Nebraska-Omaha and Idaho State.

She ultimately chose Idaho State but her aspirations reach beyond playing basketball. Maracigan hopes to become a teacher and a coach.

“I want to coach basketball eventually and I want to be able to make a difference in kids’ lives,” she said.

Maracigan honors
All-NJCAA Region I Division II team (‘09, ‘10)
All-ACCAC first team (‘09, ‘10)
NJCAA Division II All-American
third team (‘09, ‘10)

Online Extra: 3-on-3 basketball tournament rescheduled

The 3on3 Pima Basketball Tournament has been rescheduled to Friday, May 14 from 10:30am-5pm.

Teams already registered do not need to reregister.

By Daniel Gaona

Pima Community College West Campus Student Government will host the first annual Aztec Three-on-Three Basketball Tournament on April 30.

The men’s, women’s and coed 16-team tournaments are set to begin at 11 a.m. and will continue until 5 p.m. at the West Campus Gym. At least eight teams are needed for each division.

There is a $5 fee per player, and teams can have up to five players. The deadline for registration is April 28. After that, the registration fee increases to $10 per player. Registration will close when it is full.

The tournament is open to anyone, including faculty, not just PCC students. However, the age requirement is 18 or older, and at least one Pima student is required on every team.

The top two teams in each division will receive trophies but the first-place teams will also get money prizes.

For more information or to register, contact Student Body President Hector Araujo at hectoraraujo3@gmail.com or visit room A-G20 on the West Campus.

Athletic Voice: times are changing at Pima

By James Kelley

Because the Pima Community College basketball teams were likely a couple of injuries from winning national championships, their playoff runs were important.

But lost in all the hoopla was how significant the Aztecs’ seasons were.

Aztec basketball used to be a laughingstock.

The season before women’s head coach Todd Holthaus was hired, Pima was 5-22. It was the same for the men’s team, with the Aztecs going 7-23 the season before men’s head coach Karl Pieroway took over.

Both coaches made it to Nationals, the NJCAA equivalent of a Final Four or BCS game, in their second year. Holthaus returned in his third.

The lightning fast turn-arounds showed that the current recruiting philosophy of PCC is a success and could help Pima feel more like the University of Arizona when it comes to school pride.

PCC’s athletic policy restricts Pima coaches to recruiting Arizona players. Out-of-state players can play on teams, but can’t get a scholarship.

PCC’s marquee sports—softball, soccer, track and field, cross country and baseball—weren’t really hurt by the policy. Now their former weaker siblings on the hardwood are thriving.

When I heard about this philosophy six years ago, I thought it would be as much trouble as Oregon football but I have since come around. If the system works, of course it’s better to have local athletes donning Aztec navy and black instead of using mercenaries from California.

A top local sports writer, Greg Hansen, has said in a number of Arizona Daily Star columns that it is tough for Pima to compete with schools like Central Arizona College and Yavapai College, which have dorms. He says recruits would rather go to places like Coolidge or Prescott.

C’mon, son!

Dorms are cool and Pima should add them, but Pima doesn’t need them to compete with schools in remote locations. The other schools in the Arizona Community College Athletic Conference are as attractive as a Women’s Studies class taught by Ben Roethlisberger.

Cochise College only has five sports, one of which is rodeo. Central Arizona actually has two “John Deere” majors and you can also get a degree in drywall.

Yuma, where Arizona Western College is located, is so attractive that movies film there when they need video of a wasteland. I first heard of Thatcher, home of Eastern Arizona College, when I started writing for the Aztec.

Prescott, the home of Yavapai, is nice, but the locals call it “Press-kit.” Enough said.

Rounding out the league are eight schools in Phoenix. Now Maricopa County is big, about 4 million people, but it is not eight times bigger than Pima County, which has almost a million. PCC is rare to be the only community college in such a large county.

Besides, anyone who knows Arizona sports knows the Valley of the Sun is the valley of death for fan support. Phoenix is infamous for its weak support of the Coyotes, Diamondbacks, Suns and Cardinals. ASU attendance isn’t great either.

I went to the men’s basketball Region Championship game at Phoenix College, the one deciding who was going to the Big Dance. The gym was half full and most of the fans were from Pima.
Now, why would you want to go to school there and play in an empty stadium or gym?

Admittedly, Tucson has had more than its share of problems with athletics support. Every professional team here has failed except for the second-year Toros, but that actually plays to Pima’s advantage.

Tucson is very clearly a college town, so it is not hard to imagine a future in which the Pima gym is packed for every game, not just a championship. I could even see big Pima championship games moved to UA’s McKale Center or to the Tucson Community Center.

Up until the basketball teams’ wild success, the Aztecs’ best sports were mostly daytime games that don’t charge admission, like Tuesday afternoon softball or soccer in 100-plus degree heat.

If the hoops squads can continue their success and the football team continues to improve, maybe we will see more Pima T-shirts in class. It might feel a little less like a commuter school and more like UA.

Women’s basketball earns back to back All-Americans

By Eric Townsend
Photo by Daniel Gaona

The National Junior College Athletic Association has named Tia Morrison and Abyee Maracigan to their Divison II All-American team for Women’s Basketball.

Morrison is only the 15th player in NJCAA history to achieve this honor in back-to-back seasons.

The duo’s contributions led Pima to a 28-8 finish and its second consecutive National tournament appearance.

Tia Morrison

Online Extra: Pima basketball teams sweep UA basketball teams

By James Kelley
Photo by Daniel Gaona

The Pima Community College basketball teams capped their landmark season on March 31, as the Aztecs extended the University of Arizona basketball teams’ misery.

The Pima men’s team beat the UA men and the PCC women beat the Arizona ladies in a charity game held to benefit victims of the Arizona state budget cuts. A $10 donation can be made by texting the word “ARIZONA” to 90999.

The doubleheader, even though the games started at 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. to accommodate the UA’s “experienced” fans, set a state record for a attendance for a charity game with 1,533.

The Aztec men built an early lead and cruised to a 98-87 win over the Wildcats. The loss is especially disappointing for the UA as they pushed for the game after not getting invited to the Not Invited Tournament or NIT.

“Hey, it could be worse, we could have lost to Jacksonville, at home, as a No. 1 seed,” said UA men’s head coach Sean Miller, referencing Arizona State’s embarrassing NIT loss. “I mean seriously, who even knew they had a team or a University?”

Aztec sophomore forward Travares Peterson scored a game-high 23 points, while Pima sophomore guards Warren Baker and Jeremy Harden scored 20 and 19 points, respectively.

“It’s a great win for Pima and it showed Tucson basketball didn’t go anywhere this year,” Peterson said.

Wildcat freshman forward Derrick Williams scored 20 to go with 12 rebounds, but was only 4-16 from the free throw stripe. Senior guard Nic Wise scored 17 points and dished 11 assists.

Arizona pulled to within six points with 5:34 to go, but then UA junior forward Jamelle Horne mistakenly dunked on the wrong basket, the Pacific-10 referees erroneously gave Pima the ball and then Miller received a technical foul. That series of plays ended the game quicker than the Kansas City Royals are out of contention.

Horne was not made available for comment after the game, instead the UA sent out freshman walk on Max Wiepking.

“Horney has the worst luck,” Wiepking said. “First he had that foul last year against UAB, repeated it at USC, then he picked Kansas to go all the way and now this.”

The women’s game lacked excitement as Pima cruised to a 56-41 win, even without injured star sophomore Abyee Maracigan. In fact, the Aztecs played much of the game with only four players to make the game more even.

PCC sophomore center Tia Morrison had a game-high 31 points and 19 rebounds. Pima sophomore and freshman guards Nene Villalobos and Patricia Ramos scored 12 points each.

“It was a good win for us,” Morrison said. “It was awesome to be out there with the girls one last time before the home crowd and you always want to win, whether it is South Central Arizona or Arizona Arizona.”

UA freshman guard Davellyn Whyte led the Wildcats in scoring with 23 points and UA junior forward Ify Ibekwe added 20.

“It was a great win for Pima, it shows we are the Real Deal,” said Pima women’s head coach Todd Holthaus. “The girls went out there and gave it their all and we came out on top.”

Online Extra: Women’s basketball finishes seventh at Nationals

Story by Eric Townsend
Photos by Daniel Gaona

The Pima Community College women’s basketball team finished a bittersweet fifth place at Nationals, as a key injury and inopportune foul trouble may have cost the team its championship dreams.

The No. 5 seed Aztecs (28-8) opened the National Junior College Athletic Association National Championships with a convincing win over unseeded Bismarck (N.D.) State College.

Using smothering defense and excellent shooting from the field, Pima players paced themselves to an 82-56 victory.

However, sophomore guard Abyee Maracigan tore her ACL early in the game. Sophomore guard Jessica Jones led Pima with 20 points and sophomore center Tia Morrison added 19 points and 15 rebounds.

“We felt better prepared for this tournament as opposed to last year,” Morrison said. “We were all new to it, but this year it wasn’t as new, so we could see that at our best we could still win.”

In the quarterfinals, Pima played No. 4 seed Schoolcraft (Mich.) College. The Aztecs led much of the game, including 37-32 at the half, but they couldn’t seal the win without their two All-Americans.

In addition to the absence of Maracigan, Morrison was in foul trouble. She managed just seven points to go with 10 rebounds.

Schoolcraft ousted Pima for the second year in a row, 65-56.

Sophomore and freshman guards Nene Villalobos and Patricia Ramos led Pima with nine points each.

Schoolcraft was seeded one spot ahead of Pima but it made a world of difference. They had a bye in the first round, while PCC lost Maracigan in their opener.

In their first consolation bracket game, Pima beat No. 8 seed Illinois Valley Community College 77-76.

Once Pima gained a 58-42 lead, the team was able to hold on. Morrison returned to form with a game-high 31 points and 19 rebounds.

Freshmen Deana Bledsoe and Ramos added with 13 and 12 points respectively.

Pima beat No. 6 seed Parkland (Ill.) College 77-65 in the fifth-place game of the 12-team tournament. Morrison scored 18 points on 7-9 shooting. Sophomore forward LeAndra Lucas scored 13 points and Villalobos scored 11.

“I’m okay with getting fifth,” Morrison said.“I just know we could have done better.”

Morrison and Lucas were named to the All-Tournament team. Morrison averaged a double-double with 18.75 points per game and 12.25 rebounds a game and Lucas averaged 7.25 and 3.25 during the tourney.

Tia Morrison

Despite losing the most successful sophomore class in school history, Morrison said the future is bright for the Aztecs.

“It’s more than just individual talent,” Morrison said. “Coach T is great at what he does so there’s no doubt the Aztecs will make it far next year.”

-James Kelley contributed to this report

Women’s Basketball Nationals
Pima: 5th place
Final record: 28-8
Bismarck State (N.D.) College: W 82-56
Schoolcraft (Mich.) College: L 65-56
Illinois Valley CC: W 77-76
Parkland (Ill.) College: W 77-65
National Champions: Kirkwood (Iowa) CC

Nationals Bracket

Online Extra: Men’s basketball puts itself on the map with 7th place finish

Story by Chris Beck
Photo by Daniel Gaona

A year ago, the Pima Community College men’s basketball team was 10-20 and had never made an appearance on the national stage.

Today, the Aztecs have turned the program around, capping a “magical” 20-16 season by placing seventh in its first trip to Nationals.

The Aztecs locked up seventh place with a 59-52 win over St. Clair County Community College. It was the team’s third win in three days.

“The way the bracket is set up, if you lose the first game, the best you can do is seventh place,” head coach Karl Pieroway said. “We were able to do that but then there is an argument that the best two teams played each other in the first game.”

Pieroway respected the talent level Lincoln had but thought things would have been different if the two had met in a later round.

“They were more than deserving of winning the championship, they are a really good team,” Pieroway said. “Looking back you kind of wish that maybe we could have played someone else in our first game and then maybe drawn Lincoln in the second round.”

The second-year coach said the team was very jittery coming into the first game and that right away it was in a hole. But a short time later, Pima was close behind.

Then, with less than 10 minutes left in the second half, star player Travares Peterson landed on his head after going up for a dunk. Pima was trailing by five points at the time.

“He took quite a spill,” Pieroway said. “That’s when you kind of forget about the game temporarily and make sure he is OK.”

The Lynx won 76-69 but the Aztecs didn’t let that affect them.

After falling to the eventual national champions, Pima won three games to sweep the consolation bracket.

The Aztecs rebounded with a 79-58 win over Mercer County College, then took down Grand Rapids Community College 74-66.

The tournament was in Danville, Ill. from March 16-20. Pieroway felt that Pima had an advantage with the crowd.

“I think it’s pretty safe to say of the 16 teams there, we were the crowd favorite for sure,” he said.

At the beginning of the season, the Aztecs weren’t supposed to do much in the Arizona Community College Athletic Conference.

Expectations weren’t high after Pima finished the regular season 14-15. However, it found a rhythm and eventually won the Region Championship at Phoenix College.

Since it was the team’s first trip to the tournament ever, no one was sure what to expect. But the Aztecs ended up excelling and Pieroway was impressed.

“For our guys to get out there for the first time and to play so well in all four games was great,” Pieroway said. “I kept telling our sophomores how proud I was of them and that they were putting Pima on the national map.”

When asked about a rematch with Lincoln, Pieroway laughed.

“They’re good,” he said. “They are really, really good. I’ll say that if we were to play them a second time, I have no idea what would happen. But I do know, if we were to play them 10 times, we would not lose 10 times.”

Pieroway said he didn’t know how many games Pima might win, but Lincoln wasn’t significantly better.

“They wouldn’t beat us every time. They just happened to get us at the right time and were a little bit more ready than we were,” Pieroway said.

Sophomore forward Peterson is the most notable departure.

Peterson burst onto the scene this season, winning two conference Player of the Week awards, along with a National Player of the Week award.

Other sophomore departures include Jeremy Harden, Warren Baker, JaMier Morris and Michael Purdie.

Morris was selected to the All-Tournament team. He averaged 13.5 points per game and 5.75 assists.

Pieroway is glad to have brought success to Pima but at the same time he is aware of the downside.

“For the first time, Pima men’s basketball will be playing with a target on their back,” he said. “I’ve gone through that before and I’ll say it’s a whole different set of circumstances.”

Pieroway said the team’s approach next year will be different.

“Now there are expectations, people aren’t going to take you lightly and people aren’t going to take you for granted,” he said. ”So we definitely have to put the best product on the floor.”

Warren Baker led the team in scoring with 15 points. Daniel Conorque and Jeremy Harden both contributed to the win with double-doubles.

The Aztecs took down Grand Rapids Community College 74-66 on March 19 to secure a place in the seventh-place game.

Baker had a big game, scoring 19 point to lead the Aztecs. Sophomore guard JaMier Morris had a terrific night with 14 points and 13 assists.

JaMier Morris

The day before, PCC defeated Mercer County Community College 79-58.

Baker again led the Aztecs with 20 points, including 3-6 from beyond the arc. Freshman Ervin Felder chipped in with 10 points and six rebounds.

The opening game against Lincoln College ended 76-69, killing the Aztecs’ dream of an improbable national title. Lincoln would go on to win the title.

This opening game loss could have dampened the team’s spirits, but only inspired the squad to win out.

This season for the Aztecs is definitely one for the books. Not only did the team go from 20 losses last year to 20 wins this year, but they also made history with a trip to nationals.

The only proper way to describe this season would be an extreme success.

In only his second year as head coach, Pieroway has tasted a regional championship and finished in the top half at nationals. Not too shabby.

While Pieroway looks on to next season, many key components of the team have played their last game in an Aztec uniform.

-Daniel Gaona contributed to this report

Men’s Basketball Nationals
Pima: 7th place
Final record: 20-16
Lincoln (Ill.) College: L 76-69
Mercer County (N.J.) College: W 79-58
Grand Rapids (Mich.) CC: W 74-66
St. Clair County (Mich.) CC: W 59-52
National Champions: Lincoln (Ill.) College

Nationals Bracket

Athletic Voice: March Madness goes wild, stay tuned for more

By Daniel Gaona

Multiple buzzer beaters, 15 upsets, 15 games decided by five points or less, four games that went into overtime.

I forgot to mention that the overall No. 1 seed Kansas fell in the second round.

Wow. There is just no word to describe the first two rounds of March Madness this year. The only thing missing was the Arizona Wildcats.

After that pandemonium, there are No. 9, 12, 11 and 10 seeds still alive.
The question is, which one will be the Cinderella? Possibly all or maybe none of them will advance.

The Big East was the tourney shocker, in a bad way. Of the eight teams that made it, only two are still alive: No. 1 Syracuse and No. 2 West Virginia.

That says a lot about the conference that was supposed to dominate the tournament. Six losses in the first two rounds spells overrated, especially when you look at the caliber of teams they faced.

No. 11 Washington and No. 8 California were the only Pacific-10 teams to make it, and both knocked off a Big East squad in the first round. The Huskies beat Marquette with a basket in the final seconds and the Golden Bears blew past Louisville.

Washington is the lone Pac-10 team in the Sweet 16. It will beat West Virginia but then lose to No. 1 Kentucky. The Kentucky Wildcats will take out No. 12 Cornell and then the Huskies to win the East Region. They’ve already scored 190 points in the tourney.

Down in the South Region, No. 10 St. Mary’s and No. 3 Baylor will be close but Baylor will take it. That gives them a date with No. 1 Duke, which will beat No. 4 Purdue easily.

The Bears and Blue Devils will set up another exciting game. It will go down to the final seconds and probably overtime too, but Duke will end up winning.

No. 9-seeded Northern Iowa is a candidate for the Cinderella this year as it pushed past tournament favorite Kansas. After a win like that, the Panthers have momentum in their favor.

However, they face No. 5 Michigan State, the team that lost the national championship to North Carolina last year.

The Spartans are my pick to win the Midwest Region, or “Bang Bus region” as Clark Kellogg called it on Selection Sunday. But No. 6 Tennessee or No. 2 Ohio State could be a brick wall in the Elite Eight.

Syracuse probably has the easiest road to the Final Four. It just has to beat No. 5 Butler, which has won 22 straight and is destined to fall apart, and then most likely No. 2 Kansas State.

That will set the Final Four match-ups: Michigan State Spartans against Syracuse and Kentucky against Duke.

The Spartans will fall short of a title once again while Syracuse will move on to the finals.

On the other side, Kentucky and Duke would set up a great championship game but only the Wildcats will get to play for a title. Once again, the game will go down to the wire.

In the national championship, the Orange defense will slow down the Wildcats but the Syracuse offense will still have to throw up big numbers. There will be no room for error on either side and one mistake could decide the game
.
As long as those two things occur and the Orange doesn’t get sloppy, they will win and possibly redeem respect for the Big East. I did say “possibly.”

But from now until the title game on April 5, there are still plenty of college hoops to watch- 14 games to be exact. Let’s just hope that the Madness continues to be wild.

Online Extra: Women’s basketball team recovers to take fifth place

By James Kelley
Photos by Daniel Gaona

The Pima Community College women’s basketball team closed out its season with a win in the fifth-place game at Nationals.

The fifth-seeded Aztecs (28-8) beat No. 6 seed Parkland (Ill.) College 77-65 to finish fifth at the 12-team National Junior College Athletic Association National Championship Tournament.

Sophomore center Tia Morrison scored 18 points on 7-9 shooting. Sophomore forward LeAndra Lucas scored 13 points and sophomore guard NeNe Villalobos scored 11.

The win over Parkland was the Aztecs’ second in a row after a close loss to No. 4 seed Schoolcraft (Mich.) College in the second round.

Abyee Maracigan

Morrison was saddled with foul trouble and in the opening minutes of Pima’s first game, the team lost All-American sophomore guard Abyee Maracigan to a torn ACL.

Morrison and Lucas were named to the All-Tournament team. Morrison averaged a double-double, 18.75 points per game and 12.25 rebounds a game and Lucas averaged 7.25 and 3.25 during the tourney.

Online Extra: Men’s basketball takes 7th place at Nationals

By James Kelley
Photos by Daniel Gaona

The Cinderella season for the Pima Community College men’s basketball team ended Saturday with a win in the seventh-place game at Nationals, their third win in a row.

The unseeded Aztecs (20-16) beat No. 4 seed St. Clair County (Mich.) Community College 59-52 in the seventh-place game of the 16-team National Junior College Athletic Association National Championship Tournament.

Pima was picked to finish 12th out of 12 teams in the preseason Arizona Community College Athletic Conference poll. Last year the Aztecs finished 10-20, and the last time PCC finished above .500 was 2001-02.

Sophomore guard Warren Baker again stepped up for the Aztecs with 15 points, leading Pima in scoring for the third game in a row.

Freshman forward Daniel Conorque had another good game, getting a double-double, scoring 12 points and grabbing 12 rebounds. Sophomore guard Jeremy Harden also had a double-double, with 10 points and 10 boards.

It was a story of what might have been for the Aztecs.

They opened the tournament with a 76-69 loss to eventual champion and No. 3 seed Lincoln (Ill.) College, which was playing in its home state. During that game, sophomore forward Travares Peterson was lost for the tournament with a head injury sustained on a dunk attempt.

Peterson was the Regional tournament MVP and was recently named National Player of the Week. The first-round loss meant seventh was the best the Aztecs could achieve.

Travares Peterson

Online Extra: Men’s basketball advances to 7th place game

Story by James Kelley
Photo by Daniel Gaona

The Pima Community College men’s basketball won its second Consolation Bracket game in a row at the National Junior College Athletic Association National Championship Tournament.

The Aztecs (19-16) beat fellow unseeded team Grand Rapids (Mich.) Community College, 74-66 on Friday to secure a spot in the seventh place game.

Sophomore guard Warren Baker led Pima in scoring for the second straight game, adding 19 points. Freshman forwad Daniel Conorque scored 16 points on 8-14 shooting.

Sophomore guard JaMier Morris got a double-double the hard way, with 14 points and 13 assists.

Pima will play fourth seeded St. Clair County (Mich.) Community College for seventh on Saturday at 10 a.m. Arizona time.

The bracket can be found here and the games be viewed online here.

Online Extra: Women’s basketball advances to 5th place game

Story by James Kelley
Photo by Daniel Gaona

The Pima Community College women’s basketball team rebounded on Friday as it won its first Consolation Bracket game at National Junior College Athletic Association National Championship Tournament.

The fifth seeded Aztecs (27-8) beat eighth seeded Illinois Valley Community College 77-76 to secure a spot in the fifth place game.

Sophomore center Tia Morrison returned to form with a monstrous game, scoring 31 points, grabbing 19 rebounds, blocking three shots and making three steals.

Sophomore forward Deana Bledsoe scored 13 points and had eight boards. Freshman guard Patricia Ramos scored 12 points.

The Aztecs will face sixth seeded Parkland (Ill.) College (28-8) for fifth place on Saturday at noon Arizona time.

The bracket can be found here and the games be viewed online here.

Online Extra: Women’s basketball falls without stars

Story by James Kelley
Photo by Daniel Gaona

The loss of Abyee Maracigan and the foul trouble of Tia Morrison was too much to overcome for the Pima Community College women’s basketball team as its national title hopes ended Thursday.

The fifth-seeded Aztecs (26-8) lost to fourth-seeded Schoolcraft (Mich.) College 65-56 in the quarterfinals of the National Junior College Athletic Association National Championship Tournament.

Maracigan, a sophomore guard, tore her ACL at the beginning of Pima’s first game and Morrison, a sophomore center, scored just seven points to go with 10 rebounds as she was saddled with foul trouble.

The Aztecs fared well without their All-Americans, leading for much of the game, but Schoolcraft pulled away in the last couple of minutes.

Freshman guard Patricia Ramos and sophomore guard NeNe Villalobos led the Aztecs in scoring with nine points each.

The loss drops Pima into the consolation bracket. Their next game will be against Illinois Valley Community College (28-6) on Friday at 10 a.m. Arizona time for a spot in the fifth place game.

The bracket can be found here and the games be viewed online here.