One week before the start of Western State Conference play, the Moorpark College men's basketball team lost its head coach for an indefinite period of time after McCarthy underwent spinal surgery Wednesday at Community Memorial Hospital in Ventura.

"They're a terrific group of kids," said McCarthy last week. "You don't try to get out of coaching this team.

"We're 10-4, it's not like we're 4-10... If you're 4-10 you might say, 'Well, jeez, my neck hurts."

Neurosurgeon Dr. Moustapha Abou-Samra removed the herniated C5-C6 disc in McCarthy's neck and fused the remaining space.

Moorpark athletic director Howard Davis termed the surgery "perfect." McCarthy, in his 12th season as Moorpark head coach, was in recovery by the time the Raiders tipped off against visiting Miramar College at Raider Pavilion.

Moorpark, ranked No. 20 in the state coach's poll, fell to 0-3 without McCarthy with an 87-80 loss.

A time table for his return isn't set, but McCarthy was confident he could leave the team in the hands of his veteran assistant, Mick Cady. The Raiders also added three more assistant coaches this season, Marvin Lea, Greg Murphy and Kenny Plummer.

Moorpark (10-5) visits College of the Sequoias Saturday in Visalia before opening WSC North play Wednesday with a visit from Hancock College. McCarthy's return isn't scheduled, but he isn't expected to be available for those games.

"You don't have to be a neurosurgeon to know that you're not going to Visalia three days after having your disk removed," said McCarthy.

From Star teammate Ivan Yeo:

"Miramar jumped out to a 14-4 lead but Moorpark countered with a 13-0 run to take a 17-14 lead. Miramar responded with an 11-1 run to lead 25-18. Miramar led 35-33 at the half.

Miramar's lead peaked at 13 at 59-46, but Moorpark went on a 23-11 run to claw back to within one. Moorpark had several chances to get in front, but Miramar was able to hold them off throughout the second half."

Moorpark, ranked No. 20 in the state, falls to 10-5.

Note: refresh for score updates:

Women's basketball

Non-conference
No. 1 Ventura women 79, San Bernardino Valley 58 FINAL

Jessi Selleh, Julie Heurung, Chanelle Brennan and Erika Ward all had 17 point as the Pirates improved to 18-0.

Broadcast of the game available at HomefieldSports.com.

Penn State quarterback Daryll Clark on the task of facing USC in the Rose Bowl Thursday:

"This is a different team than [other teams Penn State has faced]. They're a little bigger, a little stronger. It is a real intense football team. You can't beat these guys by being tricky. You just have to line-up and play."

"The entire defensive unit [stands out]. You have 11 guys get after the ball as soon as it's thrown or handed off. They're really intense. They have speed. The stats don't lie."

Penn State head coach Joe Paterno compared the USC defense Tuesday with the one famously featured by the 1978 Alabama team the Nittany Lions faced for the national championship in the Sugar Bowl, saying "They're one of the better defensive teams I've ever seen."

"[USC's defense] is right up there at the top. We've played a great defensive game in 1978 when we played Alabama in the Sugar Bowl for the National Championship. John Majors, the old coach at Pitt and then at Tennessee, said it was the best defensive football game he has even seen. It was pretty close.

"Southern California hustles. They get good position. They take advantage of any mistake you make. They are very impressive. They have big kids who can run. [Brian] Cushing, a kid we tried hard to get. The outside linebacker, the middle linebacker, two safeties, you are looking at kids big enough to play linebacker. That can do some things that they can do in the secondary, rush the passer well. They're smart. They come off blocks well.

"They're one of the better defensive teams I've ever seen. They've been consistent. Every time you give up 11 touchdowns in a year against some of the teams they have played. You have played darn good defense. They do everything well. If you make a mistake they hurt you . Tie that in with the kicking game. That kid kicks off the ball and you start from your 20. It's a formidable combination of their great kicking game and their defense. Smart tough kids who come after you after every down. They don't let up. They come after you after every blow."

Legendary Penn State head coach Joe Paterno was the highlight of the Rose Bowl's annual media day.

The 83-year-old jokingly berated photographers for their flash photography, pointing to the other end of the ballroom at the Marriott Downtown Los Angeles and telling them "to shoot the trophy, it's down there!"

He also didn't hold back with the reporters, signing off the podium with a laugh by saying "I don't give a darn about your New Year, but I hope mine is happy."

Click the jump for more of what Paterno had to say (per the Tournament of Roses):

Note: refresh for score updates:

Women's basketball

Non-conference
No. 1 Ventura women 69, Los Angeles Valley 40 FINAL

Click the jump for updates from cub reporter Jordan Clegg:

Men's basketball

Cougar Holiday Tournament, Santa Clarita

No. 12 Ventura men 81, Big Bend (Wash.) C.C. 75 FINAL

Click the jump for updates from cub reporter Pepe Araujo:

Note: refresh for score updates:

Men's basketball

Cougar Holiday Tournament, Santa Clarita
No. 12 Ventura men 82, L.A. Harbor 56 FINAL

Updates from cub reporter Pepe Araujo:
-- Back-to-back 3-pointers by Prince Abidoye gives VC a 59-46 lead at the 10-minute mark of the second half.
-- Will Faiivae's 3-point play keeps VC up, 43-35, with 15 minutes left
-- Gray's gaining confidence. His fourth 3-pointer gives VC a 41-30 lead with 16 minutes to play.
-- VC leads 36-26 at intermission.
-- Gray hits his third 3 of the first half to give the Pirates a 36-23 lead.
-- Eric Gray's 3-pointer and layup pushes VC ahead 30-18.
-- VC leads 28-18 with four minutes left in the first half
-- Dee Pinkard's steal and assist to Eric Gray pushes VC ahead 23-13 with seven minutes left in the first half.
-- VC leads 14-12 after 10 minutes and 18-13 after 12 minutes.
-- After seeing its long winning streak snapped yesterday by Chaffey, VC coaches have written "start a new streak by getting back on track with a statement game" on the whiteboard in the locker room.
-- VC faces Harbor in the consolation semifinals of the Cougar Holiday tournament at College of the Canyons.

Big Ten champion Penn State is settling into Southern California for its Rose Bowl clash with USC later this week.

Linebacker Josh Hull had time to go fishing off of the Santa Monica Pier:

"I took some time out of my schedule to go fishing off of the Santa Monica Pier. I didn't catch anything. [Kicker Collin] Wagner was the only one to catch anything. Other than that we are laying low. Getting something to eat. Taking in as much as we can. It's a lot different. No doubt about that."

Hull said that USC's offensive is filled with "dynamic" players:

"The thing that impresses me the most about them is that every skill player on the team is dynamic. They have the capability of making plays every time they get the ball in their hands. They're extremely fast. They are a very well coached team and they don't make many mistakes. It is going to come down to playing a perfect football game. It will be very similar to our Ohio State game. The team that makes the first mistake is the team that will lose."

Fullback Dan Lawlor said Penn State will attempt to build off what Oregon State accomplished in USC's lone loss of the season:

"Oregon State was a great team. We watched that game a lot. We have to build off of what Oregon State did well and what they didn't do well. We just have to have a great strategy going into the game and be ready to play."

For more reaction from the Tournament of Roses, including the Nittany Lions' excitement for the Lawry's Beef Bowl, click the jump.

Speaking after practice Saturday at Howard Jones Field, USC head coach Pete Carroll thinks that the Rose Bowl against Penn State could be a low-scoring game:

"Logically, everyone will think this would be a really low scoring game. We'll try to do that, that's the only way I ever think. These are two high-powered offenses as well, so it will be interesting to see come game time."

Carroll is looking forward to coaching against Penn State's legendary coach Joe Paterno:

"It's a nice aspect of this game. It's fun to have this opportunity and I look forward to it. It's exciting to have the opportunity to go against him in such a big setting and big match-up. I have great respect for him, like everyone has and he is well-deserving of all of it."

After an up-and-down season, USC quarterback Mark Sanchez says the Trojans' offense is "starting to click." :

"We are coming around and I think we are going to peak at just the right time. The offense as a group looks fast. We are playing fast. We know what we are doing and that makes things a lot easier."

USC tailback Stafon Johnson seems excited about the potential for a physical game against a Big Ten Conference opponent:

"That's the type of game that you want. Smash mouth football, down hill football on both sides. We just want to make sure we capitalize on third downs and execute in the red zone."

For more reaction provided by the Tournament of Roses, click the jump.

Note: refresh for score updates:

Men's basketball

Cougar Holiday Tournament, Santa Clarita
No. 6 Chaffey 92, No. 12 Ventura men 83 FINAL

Click the jump for live updates from cub reporter Pepe Araujo:

Note: refresh for score updates:

Men's basketball

Non-conference
Compton 71, Oxnard men 63 FINAL

Click the jump for live updates from budding journalist Jason Townsley on the Oxnard bench:

The Moorpark College men's basketball team (10-4) dropped out of the final state coaches' poll of the 2008 calendar year this week after going two-and-out in the Glendale tournament.

The Ventura College men's basketball team (13-3), dropped two spots to No. 12, despite extending its 12-game winning streak by putting together an impressive victory at powerful Fullerton.

The Pirates have a better record than the five teams ranked immediately ahead of them, which includes two teams it recently defeated in No. 6 Diablo Valley and No. 10 Los Medanos

Ventura is No. 6 and Moorpark is No. 12 in the Southern California poll.

The Ventura College women's basketball team will enter 2009 as the No. 1-ranked team in the state, as the 16-0 Pirates retained the top spot in the final poll of 2008.

Ventura earned 13 of 14 first-place votes. The state's only other unbeaten team, City College of the San Francisco (15-0) earned the other one.

Santa Barbara City, the only WSC North rival in the poll, dropped out of the both the state and Southern California polls this week.

Click on the jump for the full poll.

Note: refresh for score updates:

Men's basketball

Pepsi Holiday tournament, Sequoias, third-place
No. 10 Reedley 70, Oxnard 58 FINAL
Live updates from budding journalist Jason Townsley:
-- Nick Molina's 3-pointer draws Oxnard within 45-37 of Reedley with 10 minutes to play.
-- A 8-2 Reedley run pushes the lead out to 41-32 with 13 minutes to play.
-- Reeley leads 30-26 at the half. Johnson has a team-high 14 points and Dewaal has six points.
-- Johnson buries and floater and a stepthrough layup trim the Reedley lead to two, 28-26, with 80 seconds left in the first half.
-- Bernard Burrell scores and Johnson sinks two free throws but OC still trails 25-20 with four minutes left in the half.
-- Dewaal makes a pair of free throws and Johnson drives for a layup to pull the Condors within 16-14.
-- Jonathan Johnson's runner pulls OC within six points midway through the first half.
-- Matt Dewaal's layup and free throw makes it 13-8 with 11:45 to play, first half.
-- Oxnard's first field goal, from Craig Lee, pulls OC within 13-5 after seven minutes.
-- Reedley scores 13 of the first 15 points of the game.

Women's basketball

AVC Holiday tournament, consolation championship
No. 20 Santa Barbara City 81, Moorpark 63 FINAL
-- Reyneisha Mays had 22 points and 10 rebounds, Molly Carson had 14 points and Kristen Thomas added 10 points for the Raiders (7-9) Tiffany Hurd was held to five points on 2 of 15 shooting.
-- Click the jump for the full box.

Note: refresh for score updates:

Men's basketball

Pepsi Holiday tournament, Sequoias, semifinals
Porterville 41, Oxnard 40 FINAL
Click the jump for more live updates from budding journalist Jason Townsley:
-- Despite holding Porterville to three points in the final 12 minutes and closing the game on a 16-3 run, OC (7-7) sees its four-game winning streak snapped. The Condors will play No. 10 Reedley in the third-place game tomorrow.
-- Jonathan Johnson missed a potential game-winning runner and Craig Lee missed the putback in traffic at the buzzer as the Condors almost came all the way back from 14 points down with 12 minutes to play.
No. 13 Bakersfield 82, No. 10 Reedley 74 FINAL
Consolation semifinals: Mount SAC 71, Sac City 68; Sequoias 60, Contra Costa 52

Women's basketball

Non-conference
No. 1 Ventura 100, Los Angeles Trade Tech 31 FINAL
Click the jump for more live updates from budding journalist Jordan Clegg:
-- Ward and Brennan score 18 points apiece and Kris King adds 17 points, 12 rebounds, six steals and four blocks as No. 1 Ventura improves to 16-0. Jessi Selleh had 12 points, Kristine McPherson had 10 points, Lacey Escamilla had nine rebounds and Van Someren had seven assists.

AVC Holiday tournament, consolation semifinals
Moorpark 79, Bakersfield 45 FINAL
-Tiffany Hurd had 26 points and Reyneisha Mays had 22 points and 13 rebounds as the Raiders improved to 7-7. Click the jump for the full, official box score.
No. 20 Santa Barbara City 69, Los Angeles Valley 52 FINAL
-- Moorpark will play WSC North rival SBCC tomorrow at 1:30 p.m. in the consolation championship in Lancaster.
Semifinals: Fullerton 47, Mount San Jacinto 42 (OT), Fresno vs. Antelope Valley

Note: refresh for score updates:

Men's basketball

Non-conference
No. 10 Ventura men 92, Fullerton 83 FINAL
Click the jump for more updates from cub reporter Pepe Araujo:
- VC extends the program's longest win streak in four years to 12 with a 92-83 win at a very tough Fullerton team. Ventura (13-3) can tie the 2002-03 team for the best start since the Mathews' era with a win next week against Chaffey in the Canyons tournament.
- Prince Abidoye had 19 points and Dee Pinkard added 17 points.

Vaquero Classic at Glendale
Glendale 109, No. 16 Moorpark men 105 FINAL
- "I don't know that we couldn't (play defense), but we didn't," said Moorpark coach Remy McCarthy.
"We've got to get a little tougher."
Orange Coast 77, Cerritos 60 FINAL
El Camino 64, Rio Hondo 45 FINAL
Antelope Valley 74, Canyons 60 FINAL

Pepsi Classic at Sequoias, Visalia, quarterfinals
Oxnard men 53, Sequoias 46 FINAL
Click the jump for more updates from cub reporter Jason Townsley:
- OC (7-6), riding a four-game winning streak, advances to play Porterville in the tournament's semifinals tomorrow.
Porterville 68, Contra Costa 60 FINAL
No. 10 Reedley 68, Mount San Antonio 58 FINAL
No. 13 Bakersfield 99, Sacramento City 92 FINAL

Women's basketball

Non-conference
No. 1 Ventura women 78, Cypress 64 FINAL
Click the jump for more updates from cub reporter Jordan Clegg:
- Chanelle Brennan had 23 points and Erika Ward had 14 points, including two big 3-pointers that helped the Pirates dig out of a seven-point hole in the second half, as Ventura improved to 15-0.
- VC uses a 18-7 run to take a 54-44 lead with 8:35 to play.

AVC Holiday tournament, Lancaster, quarterfinals
No. 9 Fresno 66, Moorpark 52 FINAL
- Tiffany Hurd had 19 points and Reyneisha Mays added 15 points and 13 rebounds for Moorpark. Click the jump for the full box.
No. 8 Antelope Valley 84, Bakersfield 50 FINAL
Mount San Jacinto 64, Los Angeles Valley 54 FINAL
Fullerton 63, No. 20 Santa Barbara 51 FINAL

When the Star published the local schedule today, it included a community college men's basketball game between Oxnard and No. 4 Riverside tonight at Condor Center.

According to Oxnard coach Jason Cunningham, that game was canceled earlier this season, at Riverside's request, because the Tigers had played too many preseason scrimmages.

That disappointed Cunningham and the Condors, who would have loved a chance to take down a top team in the Condor Center.

But, in return for canceling the game, Riverside coach John Smith offered to visit Oxnard in each of the next two seasons.

"It's a good situation for us," said Cunningham. "They're usually ranked up there and we'll get a chance to beat a top team at home."

Tiffany Hurd had 18 points and 10 rebounds and Reyneisha Mays had six points and 12 rebounds, but the Moorpark College women's basketball team lost 44-42 at Los Angeles Southwest College Tuesday night.

The Raiders (6-7) had possession in the final moments but couple finish a drive to knot the score.

The Oxnard College men's basketball team (6-6) won the annual Santa Barbara City Classic Saturday night with a 54-45 win over Grossmont.

It was the Condors' first tournament title since Dec. 29, 2002, when future state Player of the Year Jeremiah Massey had 28 points and 12 rebounds to lead Oxnard to its third straight tournament championship with a 105-96 win over Big Bend (Wash.) C.C.

It was the 13th win of an eventual 14-game winning streak. OC had won the Sequoias Holiday Tournament and Santa Barbara City Classic the previous weekends.

Oxnard defeated Victor Valley, Los Angeles Valley and Grossmont over the weekend.

The Condors had dropped a couple finals in the interim, including the 72-69 loss to Ventura in last year's Condor Classic title game and the 62-60 loss to Cypress in the title game of the 2005 Santa Barbara City Classic.

The No. 10 Ventura College men's basketball team (12-3) has won 11 straight games, the program's longest winning streak in four years.

The streak is Ventura's longest since the All-State tandem of Moses Gonzalez and Gary Nunez led the Pirates to 19 straight wins from Dec. 17, 2004 until the state quarterfinal loss to Fresno on March 10, 2005.

Ventura had 10-game winning streaks stopped in each of the past three seasons -- falling 69-66 to Oxnard on Feb. 20, 2008, 97-92 at Moorpark on Feb. 14, 2007 and 69-66 at Riverside on Dec. 9, 2005.

Ventura succeeded In their fourth bid Saturday afternoon in San Jose, beating No. 9 Los Medanos 90-86 despite trailing for the first 37 minutes.

Four men's basketball teams from Western State Conference's North Division won tournaments this past weekend, including all three teams from Ventura County.

1. No. 10 Ventura (12-3) won the San Jose City Classic.
2. No. 15 Moorpark (10-2) won the Intensity Classic at Los Angeles Southwest.
3. No. 20 Cuesta (12-4) won the Foothill College tournament.
4. Oxnard (6-6) won the Santa Barbara City Classic.

"This is going to be fun," said Moorpark coach Remy McCarthy Monday night of the upcoming conference campaign.

The WSC North season will begin with a doozy Jan. 7, when Cuesta visits Ventura, while Moorpark hosts Hancock and Oxnard travels to Santa Barbara City.

Riding high on an 11-game winning stream and coming off a second straight tournament victory in the San Jose City Classic, the Ventura College men's basketball team (12-3) broke into the Top 10 of the state coaches' poll released Monday, rising five places to No. 10.

Ventura, without a loss since Nov. 13, sat one place behind No. 9 Los Medanos, which VC beat 90-86 in Saturday's tournament final.

After sweeping its opposition in the Intensity Classic at Los Angeles Southwest to extend its winning streak to four games, the Moorpark College men's basketball team (10-2) rose one place to No. 15.

Click on the jump for the full polls.

The two county teams are No. 5 and No. 8 in the Southern California poll, respectively.

No. 1 Fresno City (14-0), the state's lone unbeaten team, maintained the top spot in the state and North region polls. No. 2 San Diego City (11-2) sits atop the South region poll.

The No. 1 Ventura College women's basketball team remained the top-ranked team in the California community college women's basketball coaches' poll when the sixth poll was released Tuesday.

The Pirates (14-0), off to their best start since the unbeaten state championship season of 1999-2000, earned 15 of 17 first-place votes to keep the top spot for the third straight week.

No. 2 City College of San Francisco (14-0), the state's other unbeaten team, earned the other two votes.

Ventura also passed three-time defending state champion Mount San Antonio atop the state's rating percentage index (RPI), which is a significant part of the postseason seeding criteria. Although that probably won't last.

VC's opponents are 109-81 on the season, although the Pirates seem to have gotten past the toughest part of their regular season schedule, at least on paper.

Ventura's five remaining non-conference opponents (Cypress, Los Angeles Trade-Tech, Los Angeles Valley, San Bernardino Valley and Compton) are a combined 20-29.

The other six WSC North schools are a combined 35-47, which means VC's remaining schedule is against opponents who are a combined 90-123 right now.

Butte College, which confirmed a 12-0 season by beating Mount San Antonio, 17-9, in the California state title game, was named JC Grid-wire national champions Sunday.

Butte edged Butler (Kan.) C.C., which beat Snow in the NJCAA title game in double overtime.

Click the jump for the full poll.

Results from the biggest California Community College men's basketball tournament of the season:

Saturday's Results
Championship Game
Saddleback 63, Fullerton 62

Third-Place
No. 9 Yuba 72, West Los Angeles 61

Fifth-Place
No. 5 Riverside 73, No. 2 Citrus 62

Consolation Championship
Antelope Valley 69, Desert 57

Click the jump for the all-tournament team.

Star teammate Ivan Yeo reports some hijinks towards the end of that Moorpark-Los Angeles Valley third-place game in the Moorpark College Classic today:

The No. 3-ranked Mount San Antonio College women's basketball team held on to a 77-74 win over local rival Citrus in the final of the Moorpark College Classic.

After being held to single-digit scoring for the first two times all season Friday and Saturday, Moorpark College sophomore Tiffany Hurd bounced back Sunday afternoon.

Hurd, a Moorpark High product, scored 33 points as Moorpark defeated Los Angeles Valley, 64-57, in the third-place game of the Moorpark College Classic at Raider Pavilion.

Hurd splashed eight 3-pointers, including four in the final two minutes with the game hanging in the balance.

It's the third time in 12 games that Hurd has hit the 30-point mark.

The three Ventura County community college basketball teams are thriving, coming off a weekend in which the three programs went a combined 8-0.

The No. 15-ranked Ventura College men's basketball team (12-3) won three more games, including wins over the No. 11- and No. 14-ranked teams in the state, to win the San Jose City Classic and extend its winning streak to 11 games.

The No. 16-ranked Moorpark College men's basketball team (10-2) won two more games, sweeping its opposition in the Intensity Classic at Los Angeles Southwest, to extend its winning streak to four games.

The Oxnard College men's basketball team (6-6), which opened the season with four straight losses, swept its three games to win the Santa Barbara City Classic and get back to the .500 mark.

The county's three teams are a combined 28-11, a .718 winning percentage.

Jonathan Johnson and Marc Pajund had 14 points apiece as the Oxnard College men's basketball team defeated Grossmont in the final of the Santa Barbara City Classic Saturday night.

Oxnard, which improved to 6-6 with the win, defeated Victor Valley, Los Angeles Valley and Grossmont over the three-day tournament.

The No. 16 Moorpark College men's basketball team improved to 10-2 with a 88-78 win over Los Angeles Southwest Saturday night in the Intensity Classic.

BJ Wortham had 16 points and seven rebounds for the Raiders.

Click the jump for the box score.

Click the jump to see the box score for the Ventura College men's basketball teams win over Los Medanos Saturday.

The No. 15 Ventura College men's basketball team may just have thrust itself into the state Top 10 by winning the San Jose City Classic with a 90-86 win over No. 14 Las Medanos Saturday afternoon.

The Pirates also beat No. 11 Diablo Valley Thursday.

"I hope so," said assistant coach Jon Wyers. "I think we may be pushing Top 5. All those teams beat up on each other in the Riverside tournament. We'll see."

Using all 13 players and all 40 minutes, the Ventura College men's basketball team's improbable winning streak rolls on.

Danny Benson had 23 points and Will Faiivae had 22 points as the No. 15-ranked Ventura College men's basketball team won the San Jose City Classic with a 90-86 win over No. 14 Los Medanos in the championship game of the San Jose City Classic Saturday afternoon.

Randy Hunter had 12 points and tournament MVP Dee Pinkard chipped in 11 points as Ventura (12-3) came from behind, and then hung on at the death, for its 11th straight win despite 33 points from Tyree Murray of Los Medanos (9-4).

Ventura trailed for the first 37 minutes as Los Medanos, which was working on its own six-game winning streak, scored 16 of the game's first 25 points, led 39-35 at the half and used a 7-0 run to build a 55-48 lead with 13 minutes to play.

"The guys showed real character today," said coach Jon Wyers. "We didn't take our first lead until the last three minutes... They showed a lot of composure."

Click the jump for the box score for the Moorpark College women's basketball team's 74-61 loss to Citrus College Saturday night at Raider Pavilion.

The tough weekend continued to sophomore Tiffany Hurd, Moorpark's leading scorer, who finished Saturday's Moorpark College Classic semifinal with seven points.

After scoring in double figures in each of the first nine games, Hurd, who was averaging 22.0 points per game, scored in single digits for the second straight night.

She finished with seven points on 2 of 9 shooting.

"Just so frustrated with the way I played," said Hurd.

The Moorpark College women's basketball team knows what it needs for the holidays.
A finishing kick.

Yet another strong first half was spoiled by the lack of a finishing touch in the second half Saturday night at Raider Pavilion, where the Raiders fell 74-61 to Citrus in the semifinals of their annual Moorpark College Classic.

"Too bad the game wasn't 20 minutes long," said Moorpark coach Lindsay Goldblatt. "We've had a lot of good first halves."

Budding center Reyneishia Mays had a team-high 15 points, all in the first half, and 11 rebounds as four Raiders scored in double figures.

"She's put together a couple good first halves," said Goldblatt of the 6-foot-2 center. "She knows she has the ability to do big things for us."

Click the jump for the box score from the state title game between Butte and Mount San Antonio colleges tonight in Costa Mesa.

From the CCCFCA:

COSTA MESA, Calif. - Butte College finished the 2008 football season as the nation's only undefeated community college team, defeating Mount San Antonio, 17-9, Saturday night for the California Community College Athletic Association Championship before a crowd of 4,123 at Orange Coast College.

Northern California champion Butte, located in Oroville, completed a 12-0 season. Southern California champion Mt. SAC, from Walnut in Los Angeles County, wound up 12-2.

Mt. San Antonio's high-powered offense, scoring at a 45.4 clip, could not overcome the Roadrunners' defense, led by player of the game Brandon Rankin. He is also the state defensive player of the year. A 6-foot-4, 250-pound defensive lineman, Rankin had three sacks and six tackles, as the Mounties could manage only 30 yards on the ground and 218 in total offense.

Note: refresh for score updates:

Men's basketball

San Jose City Classic, finals
No. 15 Ventura men 90, No. 14 Los Medanos 86 FINAL
-- Click the jump for updates from the VC women's game from budding journalist Pepe Araujo.

Santa Barbara City Classic, finals
Oxnard men 54, Grossmont 45 FINAL

Intensity Classic, finals
No. 16 Moorpark men vs. Orange Coast, 7 p.m.

Women's basketball

Non-conference
No. 1 Ventura women 53, No. 14 Orange Coast 42 FINAL
No. 6 College of the Canyons 74, Oxnard women 38 FINAL
-- Click the jump for updates from the VC women's game from budding journalist Jordan Clegg.
-- "We were expecting better," said Oxnard coach Phil Sherman. "We shot the ball far too quickly tonight."
Moorpark College Classic, semifinals
Citrus 74, Moorpark women 61 FINAL
No. 3 Mount SAC 87, Los Angeles Valley 46 FINAL
Consolation semis:
No. 17 Santa Barbara City 80, Los Angeles Southwest 57 FINAL
No. 6 Antelope Valley 82, Imperial Valley 47 FINAL

Click on the jump for the full, official box of the Ventura College women's basketball team's 53-42 win over Orange Coast Saturday afternoon.

Michelle Santizo had 12 points and Julie Heurung had 11 points as the No. 1-ranked Ventura College women's basketball team improved to 14-0 with a 53-42 win at No. 14 Orange Coast Saturday afternoon in Costa Mesa.

Chanelle Brennan added 10 points and VC led the other Pirates (9-4) to 33 percent shooting.

Yet a 14th straight victory did not appease Ventura coach Ned Mircetic.

"Not after this game," said Mircetic. "We didn't play very well. We didn't play with energy or enthusiasm."

"We kind of went through the motions."

"We played well enough to win, but that's not good enough. We need to play outstanding. That's the mark of being great."

By Ivan Yeo
Correspondant

The Moorpark College women's basketball team advanced to the semifinals of its Moorpark College Classic a 67-49 win over Imperial Valley Friday night at Raider Pavilion.

The Raiders' leading scorer, Tiffany Hurd, had a quiet night, scoring nine points. Hurd's teammates picked up the slack, most notably center Reynisha Mays, who scored 22 points, including 12 in the second half. Molly Carson and Kristin Thomas scored 12 points apiece.

"(Reynisha) did a good job on the boards and she did a good job finishing," said Moorpark head coach Lindsay Goldblatt of Mays' effort.

Note: refresh for score updates:

San Jose City Classic, semifinals
No. 15 Ventura men 76. Alameda 50 FINAL
No. 14 Los Medanos 58, No. 10-North San Jose 55 FINAL

From budding journalist Pepe Araujo on the bench in San Jose:
-- VC wins its 10th straight game, improves to 11-3 and advances to Saturday's final against No. 14 Los Medanos.
-- Dee Pinkard leads VC with nine points at the half, followed by Danny Benson's eight points.
-- Will Faiivae with "another block party, back-to-back-to-back blocks" llate in the first half help keep Ventura ahead by 13 points, 31-18.
-- "Dee Pinkard on fire" as VC pushes ahead 25-12 with 5 min left in the first half
-- Big 3 by Dee Pinkard to push Ventura ahead 21-12 after 12 minutes.
-- Will Faiivae opens the game by slamming home with two hands from a steal.
-- Eight quick points by Danny Benson for an early 14-4 lead
- Coach Wyers' quote of the day was "keep doing what we're doing."

Moorpark College Classic, quarterfinals
Moorpark 67, Imperial Valley 49 FINAL
Citrus 79, No. 6 Antelope Valley 74 FINAL (OT)
No. 3 Mount SAC 72, Los Angeles Southwest 42 FINAL
Los Angeles Valley 77, No. 17 Santa Barbara City 73 FINAL
-- The Raiders' leading scorer, Tiffany Hurd had a quiet night, scoring nine points. Hurd's teammates picked up the slack, most notably center Reynisha Mays, who scored 22 points, 12 in the second half. Molly Carson and Kristin Thomas scored 12 points apiece.

Non-conference game
No. 1 Ventura women 73, Santa Ana 55 FINAL
-- At the half, VC led 46-17. Chanelle Brennan led VC with 10 points, followed by eight points by Donelle Griggs and seven points by Michelle Santizo.
-- Griggs finished with a team-high 12, followed by 10 points by both Brennan and Jessi Selleh as top-ranked VC improved to 13-0.
-- VC plays at No. 15 Orange Coast tomorrow afternoon at 1 p.m.

Intensity Classic
No. 16 Moorpark men 76, El Camino 70 FINAL
-- Moorpark improved to 9-2, despite being without head coach Remy McCarthy, who needed a cortisone shot to alleve his ailing back, for the first 10 minutes of first half.
-- Assistant coach Mick Cady took over. "With Mick there we've got no problems," said McCarthy.
-- Moorpark led 66-49 before finishing poorly.

Santa Barbara City Classic
Oxnard men 61, Los Angeles Valley 59 FINAL
-- Jonathan Johnson had 18 points as the Condors advance to tomorrow's final against Grossmont.

Ventura College men's basketball coach Jon Wyers said Thursday, following the Pirates' 71-69 overtime win over No. 11 Diablo Valley, a vanquished opponent had trouble shaking Ventura's hands for the third straight game.

Wyers said that Diablo Valley originally refused to line up to shake Ventura's hands, before actually deciding to walk through the lineup without actually shaking any hands.

"Teams don't like losing to us," said Wyers.

Or maybe they're just afraid of spreading germs?

The Ventura College men's basketball team won again Thursday night without head coach Ned Mircetic, who will coach the Ventura women to two games in Orange County this weekend.

The only Southern California team in the eight-team San Jose City College Classic, Ventura outlasted Diablo Valley, 71-69, in overtime.

"Usually before every game when Ned's not there, coach (Will) Cowen and I put a quote on the board," said Ventura coach Jon Wyers.

Written on the locker room whiteboard Thursday was "Another big game... represent the South well."

The message was simple:

"You've been working hard to finally get ranked," said Wyers. "Diablo Valley is another win that will push us up higher."

Prince Abidoye had 17 points and Dee Pinkard added 11 points, including the decisive buzzer-beating runner, as Ventura, ranked No. 15 in the state, outlasted No. 11 Diablo Valley, 71-69, in overtime in the quarterfinals of the San Jose City Classic.

Sophomore Eric Gray chipped in 10 points, including a huge 3-pointer to begin overtime, and Randy Hunter had nine points.

Despite foul trouble to three key starters, Ventura (10-3) advanced to face Alameda (2-7), which also needed overtime Thursday to overcome Monterey Peninsula 66-64, in the semifinals tonight.

Diablo Valley (7-3) was led by 18 points each by Dan Davies and Gary Pinkey.

Ventura won for the ninth straight time besides foul trouble by key starters Benson and Will Faiivae, who combined for only nine points.

"At the same time, that's our motto," said coach Will Cowen. "We have an array of guys that will step up and we're real proud of them. It was a very hostile environment and our guys never quit."

No. 15 Ventura 71, No. 11 Diablo Valley 69 -- FINAL (OT)

According to intrepid cub reporter Pepe Araujo:
-- But Dee Pinkard's buzzer-beating layup pushed VC to its 10th win of the season.
-- Down 4 points with 20 seconds to play, DVC again found a way to tie the game 69-69.
-- Mike Diacos finds Randy Hunter inside for a 68-65 VC lead with 41 seconds to play in OT.
-- Eric Gray opened the overtime session with a 3-pointer and a steal to push VC ahead 66-61. DVC whittled it down to 66-63 with 1:30 to play in the extra period.

Updates from intrepid cub reporter Pepe Araujo in the second half included:
-- DVC ended regulation on a 9-0 run to tie the game 61-61 and force overtime.
-- Benson has fouled out and DVC has trimmed VC's lead to 61-58 with 1:30 left. DVC on a 6-0 run over the past 90 seconds.
-- With three minutes left and VC leading 61-52, Abidoye and Benson have four fouls.
-- Prince Abidoye strokes a huge 3-pointer to restore the VC lead to 59-51 with four minutes to play.
--Faiivae two-hand dunk from Danny Benson gives VC a 54-46 lead with five minutes to play.
-- Randy Hunter's bucket is followed by Jeremiah Slowik's steal and two free throws to give VC its largest lead, 48-34 with 10 minutes to play.
-- A layup and one by Dee Pinkard gives Ventura a 36-28 lead with 16 minutes to play.
-- A 3-pointer by Dee Pinkard and a layup by Will Faiivae to start the second half give Ventura a 33-24 lead with 18 minutes to play.

Updates from intrepid cub reporter Pepe Araujo in the first half included:
-- Alameda defeated Monterey Peninsula in overtime in the first game. VC will play Alameda if it holds on, Monterey Peninsula if it doesn't.
-- "Second team came out with intensity on defense. Jordan Harris sparked it with a steal and a fast break, two-hand dunk at the nine-minute mark."
-- "Prince (Abidoye) off the bench with a quick seven points" at the five-minute mark.
-- "Prince and Jordan great off the bench. Psycho defense is causing lots of turnovers."
-- "Coach 'Jon' Wyers said it because before the game, 'We're the only team from the South here. Let's represent well.' "
-- Prince Abidoye had a team-high seven points at the half, followed by five points from Eric Gray.

The Ventura College men's basketball team (9-3), riding high on an eight-game winning streak, made its first appearance in the state coaches' poll Tuesday.

The Pirates debuted at No. 15, one place ahead of cross-county rival Moorpark (8-2), which gained three spots in its third week in the poll.

Western State Conference rival Cuesta is No. 18.

The poll is topped by No. 1 Fresno City (14-0), No. 2 Citrus (11-1) and No. 3 San Diego City (11-2).

Click the jump for the full polls:

The Ventura College women's basketball team stayed atop the California Community College women's basketball coaches' polls for the second straight week, adding a first-place vote in the process.

The Pirates, ranked No. 1 in Southern California and the state, earned all seven first-place votes in the Southern California coaches' poll and 13 of the 15 first-place votes in the state poll.

San Francisco (11-0) earned the two other first-place votes in the state poll. A third unbeaten team, Rio Hondo (11-0) sits No. 3 in Southern California and No. 5 in the state.

Three-time defending state champion Mount San Antonio, which lost to Ventura twice in an eight-day span, held steady at No. 2 in Southern California and No. 3 in the state.

Ventura is 12-0 and has won all three tournaments in which it has entered.

Click the jump for the full polls.

From the Pacific-10 Conference:

Double Dippers: Patrick Chung of Oregon is a double first-teamer, being named on both defense and as the first-team special teams performer (non-kicker or returner). Plus first-team wide receiver picks Mike Thomas of Arizona and Sammie Stroughter of Oregon State also were voted onto the team as punt returners (Thomas first team, Stroughter second team).

Oh Brother: While Oregon State freshman TB Jacquizz Rodgers was named Pac-10 offensive player of the year and first-team All-Pac-10 running back, his brother, sophomore WR James Rodgers, was named to the first-team as a kick returner.
All-Academic: Five players were named to the first team on both the All-Pac-10 Team and the Pac-10 All-Academic Football Team--C Alex Mack of California, P Aaron Perez of UCLA, DE Nick Reed of Oregon, WR Sammie Stroughter of Oregon State and QB Mark Sanchez of USC. In addition, DE Clay Matthews of USC and CB Alterraun Verner of UCLA were named first-team All-Academic and second-team All-Pac-10.

From the Pacific-10 Conference:

By School: USC placed the most players on the first team with eight selections, followed by Oregon and Oregon State with five each. Arizona and California were next with four each. Five of the 12 players named to the first-team defensive unit are Trojans.

By Class: Of the 29 first-team selections, 18 are seniors, five are juniors, five are sophomores and there is one freshman.

Unanimous: Three players were named on the first-team ballot of all 10 head coaches--SS Kevin Ellison of USC, TE Rob Gronkowski of Arizona and offensive player of the year TB Jacquizz Rodgers of Oregon State. Four additional players were named on nine of 10 first-team ballots--C Alex Mack of California and the USC trio of OLB Brian Cushing, MLB Rey Maualuga and QB Mark Sanchez.

Three-time Selections: C Alex Mack of California and defensive player of the year MLB Rey Maualuga of USC were named to the first-team for the third consecutive year.

Offensive Player of the Year & Freshman of the Year Jacquizz Rodgers, TB, Oregon State:
Pat Tillman Defensive Player of the Year Rey Maualuga, MLB, USC:
Coach of the Year Mike Riley, Oregon State:

Jacquizz Rodgers became the first freshman named Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year today when the Pacific-10 Conference announced its postseason honors.

Rey Maualuga, who was a freshman at St. Bonaventure High, was named Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year.

Click the jump for the full teams.

Click the jump for the full, official box score.

After her MVP performance in the Gilcrest Invitational, Ventura sophomore Jessi Selleh made a proclaimation:

"Ventura is back. Beating Mount SAC twice by a substantial margin... says something about us and our coaches. I'm excited to see what the rest of the year is going to bring."

Ventura went to seven state finals from 1996 to 2002, winning five state championships. The Pirates reached the state tournament for the first time in five years last March.

Ventura coach Ned Mircetic didn't quite agree with his sophomore:

"Well, Ventura never left. We've won league 18 years in a row. We've won over 20 games every year. Our kids graduate, we were sixth in the country in GPA.

"Just because you don't win the last game doesn't mean that something's wrong.
We didn't go anywhere.

"It's important for us this year not to rest on the past couple weeks, but to continue looking ahead."

"You can't win the state every year. You can't maintain that because the other teams change.

Thursday night, Jessi Selleh left the College of the Sequoias gymnasium in an ambulance, strapped to a backboard.

Four nights later, Selleh left the heralded 16-team Gilcrest Invitational with the tournament's championship and Most Valuable Player trophies.

"From an extreme low to MVP, it's pretty exciting," said Selleh, who averaged 14.3 points in the three wins after she collided with teammate Michelle Santizo as she drove to the basket in Thursday's win over Sequoias.

"Once I had gotten on the stretcher, I knew I was OK," said Selleh, who missed all but six games last season with a back injury.

Strapped to her hospital bed late Thursday, Selleh made coach Ned Mircetic promise to play her Friday if she was cleared by doctor's tests.

"I refused to not play," said Selleh. "I didn't come all the way up here to watch my teammates play.

"I've spent enough time sitting on the sidelines being hurt... There's too much excitement going on for me to be in pain."

The Gilcrest champion is usually a frontrunner for the big prize in March and Sunday's win put the Pirates in that select group, especially considering it was Ventura's second win over the three-time defending state champion in eight days.

Mount SAC had lost twice in their previous 96 games over four seasons.

The last time Ventura won the VC-Kiwanis Tournament of Champions and the Gilcrest Invitational was 2001-02, also the last time the Pirates won the state championship.

"Our season is a third of the way through and it's still a long journey that ends in February or March," said Ventura coach Ned Mircetic. "We have plenty of room for improvement.

Most Valuable Player Jessi Selleh and Chanelle Brennan scored 17 points each and Michelle Santizo added 12 points and six steals as the top-ranked Ventura College women's basketball team won the season's second biggest tournament for the first time in seven years with a 71-54 win over No. 3 Mount San Antonio in Visalia.

Ventura used a 25-5 run to build a 31-11 lead with five minutes to play in the first half following Santizo's up-and-under move on the left block.

"We had a great (15 minutes) in the first half," said coach Ned Mircetic. "We played as well as we have all year."

Down 44-23 at the half, Mount SAC twice ripped off 7-0 runs but never pulled within single digits.

No. 1 Ventura 71, No. 3 Mount SAC 54 FINAL

VC wins the Gilcrest Invitational for the first time since 2001.

Jessi Selleh had 12 points, Chanelle Brennen had 10 points, Michelle Santizo had nine points and five steals and Julie Heurung had six points and seven rebounds as the top-ranked Ventura College women's basketball team took a 44-23 halftime lead over three-time defending state champion Mount San Antonio College in the final of the heralded 16-team Gilcrest Invitational Sunday afternoon in Visalia.

Matt Hornbuckle shook off a rough weekend to score five of his team-high 17 points to guide the Moorpark College men's basketball team to a 96-95 win over MiraCosta College Sunday afternoon in the consolation championship of the Ranch Vista Shootout at Antelope Valley College in Lancaster.

The Oaks Christian School product hit a game-tying 3-pointer with a minute to play and, off a Silvio Arie-Lisboa pass, made a layup with 1.1 seconds to play that put the Raiders (8-2) ahead 96-93.

MiraCosta's CJ Harris caught a length-of-the-court pass, turned and hit an off-balance jumper as the buzzer sounded that the officials ruled a two pointer instead of sending the game into overtime.

"I thought he was a good two feet inside the line," said Moorpark coach Remy McCarthy. "I spoke to the kids after the game how, given that situation, we might dribble the clock out next time."

The Raiders, ranked No. 19 in the state coaches' poll, improved to 8-2 by stroking nine 3-pointers.

Hornbuckle had 17 points on 7 of 11 shooting. Dwight Jones scored 15 points, Mike Rodgers scored 15 points and B.J. Wortham scored 13 points.

MiraCosta (5-7) was led by 27 points from Chris Raybon, 26 points from Harris and 24 points from Daniel Phair.

Rodgers and Raybon were named All-Tournament.

Click the jump for the full box.

Sunday's scores
Consolation final: San Joaquin Delta 60, Porterville 58
Fifth-place game: Santa Barbara City 72, Cerritos 58
Third-place game: Antelope Valley 61, Fresno City 45
Championship: Ventura 44, Mount SAC 23 HALF

78th Los Angeles City Championship

USC 28, UCLA 7: Trojans put thorn in upset bid by Joe Curley in Pasadena

Locals in college notebook

Portland's Davis makes room in her heart for sick children by Rhiannon Potkey

The Ventura College basketball teams were separated Saturday by about 450 miles or about a seven-hour drive.

But that didn't stop the Pirates from putting two more games in the win column.

"We were pretty separated today," said Ventura head coach Ned Mircetic.

The Ventura men won their eighth straight game at Imperial Valley. The Ventura women won their 11th straight game against Fresno City at Visalia.

The teams are now a combined 20-3 this season.

"Not bad for a bunch of girls' coaches," said Mircetic.

The top-ranked Ventura College women's basketball team has beaten the host team, the team with the winningest active coach in the state and the team that ended its season last March.

In order to win the heralded 16-team Gilcrest Invitational for the first time since 2001-02 Sunday afternoon in Visalia, all the Pirates have to do is add its nemesis to the pile --  three-time defending state champion Mount San Antonio College.

Ventura coach Ned Mircetic is still not pleased.

"We're playing OK," hemmed and hawed Mircetic Saturday night. "We're just not turning it out right now. We're kind of stuck in second gear. We can't rev it up and get it into third gear and really open the throttle into fourth.

"We've just kind of cruised through this thing and played hard enough and well enough to win."

Click the jump for the full box of the Ventura College women's basketball team's 68-61 win over No. 9 Fresno City Saturday night in the semifinals of the heralded 16-team Gilcrest Invitational.

The No. 1-ranked Ventura College women's basketball team improved to 11-0 with a 68-61 win over No. 9 Fresno City College Saturday night in the semifinals of the 16-team Gilcrest Invitational in Visalia.

Michelle Santizo had 15 points, including three 3-pointers, and Erika Ward, Jessi Selleh and Julie Heurung all added 12 points apiece. Heurung also added 10 rebounds and three assists.

"They played hard than we did in the first half... but we found a way to close it out," said Ventura coach Ned Mircetic.

The win avenged the Pirates' state quarterfinal elimination at the Rams' hands last March.

"It was amazing," said sophomore center Julie Heurung. "It was just good because I could tell how much it meant to the sophomores and coaches."

It also moved Ventura into a final rematch with three-time defending state champion Mount San Antonio College Sunday afternoon, when it can win the tournament for the first time since 2001-02.

With a 9-8 record against Ventura, Mount SAC is the only team in the state with a winning record over Mircetic's Pirates in at least five contests.

"It's the same thing that it was last week," said coach Ned Mircetic. "They're all big games because you only get one shot at each game."

The Pirates defeated the Mounties, 65-42, Sunday in the final of the VC-Kiwanis Tournament of Champions to end the Mounties' 45-game winning streak

Saturday's scores

Championship semifinals
No. 2S Mount San Antonio 54, No. 9S Antelope Valley 48 (OT) FINAL
No. 1S Ventura 68, No. 5N Fresno City 61 FINAL

Fifth-place semifinals
No. 12S Santa Barbara 60, Moorpark 58
Cerritos 72, No. 13S Riverside 68

Consolation semifinals
No. 2N San Joaquin Delta 75, No. 7N San Jose 65
Porterville 70, No. 10N Lassen 64 (OT)

Sunday's schedule
Consolation final: San Joaquin Delta vs. Porterville, 10 a.m.
Fifth-place game: Santa Barbara City vs. Cerritos, 12 p.m.
Third-place game: Antelope Valley vs. Fresno City, 2 p.m.
Championship: Ventura vs. Mount SAC, 4 p.m.

Sophomore Will Faiivae and freshman Randy Hunter had 12 points each as the Ventura College men's basketball team won its eighth straight game, 72-57, at Imperial Valley Saturday night.

Ventura, ranked No. 15 in Southern California, is now 9-3.

The No. 19-ranked Moorpark College men's basketball team improved to 8-2 with a 97-74 win over the College of the Canyons in the consolation semifinals of the Rancho Vista Shootout Saturday afternoon at Antelope Valley College in Lancaster.

The Raiders made 18 of 32 3-pointers and were led by 17 points from Justin Taylor and 13 points from Shane Foster and Dwight Jones.

Taylor, Foster and Jones were all 3 of 4 from 3-point land.

Moorpark will play MiraCosta at 1 p.m. on Sunday for the consolation championship.

There was a humorous U-Turn in the manner in which USC head coach Pete Carroll answered questions about reports that USC offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian would take the Washington head coaching job after the Trojans' 28-7 win over UCLA Saturday afternoon at the Rose Bowl.

Carroll initially told reporters, "I don't know what the deal is, I don't know what we're supposed to say."

Carroll then debated the point with himself audibly, saying "Why am I saying that? Screw it."

Carroll then confirmed that, as far as he knows, Sarkisian is on the verge of taking over the position vacated by the firing of Tyrone Willingham earlier this season.

"As far as I know, it sounds like Washington," said Carroll. "We proudly send our guy to that job.

"It makes us extremely proud."

USC plays Washington in its second game of the 2009 season.

"We're coming after him," said Carroll. "I want you know this."

When the Bowl Championship Series pairings are announced Sunday afternoon, the USC football team will be locked into its fourth straight Rose Bowl trip, despite having the same amount of losses as the two BCS title contenders.

"It's hard when you know you lost (at) a tough Oregon State tea, when you know another team has lost at home," said USC quarterback Mark Sanchez. "It's frustrating, but we can't do anything about that. All we can do is win."

Two one-loss teams will play in the Bowl Championship Series national title game, but No. 5 USC (11-1) won't be one of them. The Trojans are set to play No. 6 Penn State (11-1) on New Year's Day in the Trojans' fourth straight Rose Bowl appearance.

"That's just how it is," said defensive end Clay Matthews, an Agoura High product. "That's just how it works. I'm sure Penn State is thinking the same thing."

USC has won all five meetings against Big 10 Conference opposition under Pete Carroll by an average margin of 35-14.

"For whatever reasons, the loss that we had just hung on us," said USC coach Pete Carroll of the Trojans 27-21 upset at Oregon State on Sept. 25. "It didn't seem like it ever changed, the opinion of that (loss).

"We had a bad quarter and a half all season... There's nothing we can do about it."

USC allowed only 56 points in the nine games since the loss in Corvallis, an average of 6.2 per game. It's allowed just seven points in the third quarter all season, a 5-yard touchdown run by Arizona's Nic Grigsby on Oct. 25.

"I'm not politicking because it doesn't feel right," added Carroll. "We just accept what it is."

UCLA quarterback Kevin Craft only threw one interception Saturday afternoon in the Bruins' 28-7 loss to No. 5 USC, but didn't do much else.

Craft completed 11 of 28 passes for 89 yards. Receiver Dominique Johnson threw the Bruins lone touchdown pass on a trick play.

"I think Kevin played hard, he worked hard to manage games and to learn our offense," said UCLA coach Rick Neuheisel. "This is not personally directed at Kevin Craft, (but) the quarterback at UCLA has to play better. For us to be the type of team that we want to be, the position of quarterback has to be played better.

"That means we have to coach it better, we have to perform better and we have to have more competition at the position."

Three plays after C.J. Gable fumbled the ball away on the Trojans' opening play from scrimmage, UCLA receiver Dominique Johnson hit running back Kahlil Bell for a 21-yard touchdown pass on a double pass to give the toothless Bruins a 7-0 lead.

UCLA's longest scoring play of the season was just the fourth passing touchdown, and 11th touchdown overall, USC's defense for the ages had allowed in 12 games.

"It took a trick play (to score)," said USC defensive end Clay Matthews, an Agoura High product. "From that point on, we said we weren't going to give up another point."

UCLA coach Rick Neuheisel on the Bruins' touchdown, which gave UCLA a 7-0 lead inside the first four minutes Saturday at the Rose Bowl:

"We had the play for the entire year."

"The play is actually called 'Tennessee,' because it was put in for the Tennessee game, but we didn't have an opportunity in that game to use it."

"So we used it today and it worked and got us off to a good start. It was exciting."

Terrence Austin broke UCLA's single-season record by reaching 1,870 all-purpose yards today.

USC responds to the early deficit with two touchdowns 2:25 apart as UCLA fails to gain a first down in the two possessions after taking a 7-0 lead.

Joe McKnight's 12-yard touchdown run evened the score and Damien Williams turned a short pass into a 12-yard touchdown catch and a 14-7 USC lead with 69 seconds left in the first quarter.

UCLA defensive end David Carter probably ends the drama by roughing USC punter Greg Woidneck.

Seven plays later, Stafon Johnson scores from 2 yards away to give USC a 21-7 halftime lead.

C.J. Gable fumbles on USC's opening play from scrimmage and, three plays later, Dominque Johnson hits Kahlil Bell for a 24-yard touchdown pass on a trick play and UCLA shockingly leads USC.

It's only the fourth passing touchdown USC has allowed all season.

With the way the UCLA defense has been playing, can this be a game after all? Remember, USC was a 33-point favorite.

The 78th city championship game has a special opening.

USC was charged a timeout for "failure to wear required equipment."

The USC coaching staff has decided to wear their home uniforms, making this the first USC-UCLA game since the teams last shared the Coliseum in 1982 that both teams will wear their home uniforms.

The officials' call draw a huge ovation by the Rose Bowl crowd.

I'm here at the Rose Bowl for the 78th city championship between the USC and UCLA football teams.

I'll keep you updated on key tidbits during the game, then have postgame coverage from the locker rooms.

NCAA Division I football
Feature: Pinkard a big part of the USC defense by Joe Curley
Preview: USC, UCLA adding uniformity to rivalry by John Nadal, Associated Press

Community College men's basketball
No. 2 Riverside 80, No. 19 Moorpark 64: Moorpark men fall to No. 2 Riverside by Joe Curley

Community College women's basketball
No. 1 Ventura 83, Cerritos 69: Balance moves VC into Gilcrest semifinal by Joe Curley

The top-ranked Ventura College women's basketball team will face No. 9 Fresno City Saturday night in the semifinals of the heralded Gilcrest Invitational in Visalia.

Fresno ended the Pirates' 2007-08 season 70-64 in the state quarterfinals March 13 in Stockton.

"We need to play with much more energy than we did tonight," said Ventura coach Ned Mircetic after the team's 83-69 win over Cerritos Friday. "If we don't, tomorrow could be a very unsatisfying experience."

Mircetic noted Fresno coach Brian Tessler in the stands at College of the Sequoias.

"He was there the whole game taking notes," said Mircetic. "Probably saying 'We have an easy one tomorrow.' "

Ventura sophomores were a mixed bag when asked about the Fresno rematch.

"Yeah, the sophomores are (excited)," said guard Jessi Selleh, who was injured for last year's playoff game. "I want a crack at 'em, too!"

"Oh yes!" said forward Donielle Griggs.

"Not really," said center Julie Heurung. "It's just another game that we need to come and play."

With his team's 83-69 win over Cerritos in the quarterfinals of the Gilcrest Invitational Friday night, Ventura College women's basketball coach Ned Mircetic improved to 540-84 over his 19 seasons, moving him within 15 wins of the state's active leader, Cerritos coach Karen Welliver.

"It was a friendly, respectful and competitive crossing of two coaches who have been doing this job for a long time," said Mircetic.

The game featured a matchup of the state's two winningest active women's basketball coaches -- Cerritos' Karen Welliver (27th year, 555-280) and Ventura's Mircetic (19th year, 540-84).

The top-ranked Ventura College women's basketball team won its 10th straight game, 83-69, over Cerritos Friday night in the quarterfinals of the Gilcrest Invitational in Visalia.

Ventura coach Ned Mircetic wasn't too pleased with the performance, even though the Pirates had five players in double figures.

"We didn't really play particularly well tonight," said Mircetic. "We just kind of executed our offense and made more shots than they did."

THE 2008 RANCHO VISTA SHOOTOUT
At the 57th ANNUAL AVC MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT

Friday's scores
Antelope Valley 74, MiraCosta 64
Miramar 84, Glendale 64
Riverside 80, Moorpark 64
San Diego City 85, Canyons 76

Saturday's schedule
Championship semifinals: San Diego City vs, Riverside, 5 p.m.; Miramar vs. Antelope Valley, 7 p.m.
Consolation semifinals: Canyons vs. Moorpark, 1 p.m.; Glendale vs. MiraCosta, 3 p.m.

Click the jump for individual statistical leaders from AVC sports information director Glenn Haller:

Click the jump for the complete box score of No. 1 Ventura's 83-69 win over Cerritos in the quarterfinals of the 16-team Gilcrest Invitational in Visalia.

Gilcrest Invitational, quarterfinal

No. 1 Ventura 83, Cerritos 69 FINAL

Chanelle Brennan and Jessi Selleh lead the Pirates with 12 points and seven points, respectively, at the half.

Cerritos put together a 12-4 run midway through the second half to pull within five points.

No. 1 Ventura improves to 10-0 and advances to the semifinals of the Gilcrest tournament tomorrow at 8 p.m. against Fresno City, which ended the Pirates' season in the state quarterfinals last March.

Friday's results

Winner's Bracket
No. 5N Fresno City 86, No. 13S Riverside 83 FINAL
No. 1S Ventura 83, Cerritos 69 FINAL
No. 9S Antelope Valley 67, Moorpark 50 FINAL
No. 2S Mount SAC 88, No. 12S Santa Barbara City 56 FINAL

Loser's Bracket
Sacramento City vs. No. 10N Lassen
Porterville 71, Sequoias 52
No. 2N San Joaquin Delta vs. Solano, 8 p.m.
No. 7N San Jose City vs. Reedley, 4 p.m.

Despite 13 points from B.J. Wortham and 10 points from Shane Foster, the No. 19-ranked Moorpark College men's basketball team fell to No. 2 Riverside, 80-64, Friday night in the opening round of the Rancho Vista Shootout in Lancaster.

The Raiders (7-2) trailed 34-29 at the half and were within six points with less than three minutes to play when the roof caved in.

"No consolation in that," said Moorpark coach Remy McCarthy. "We were right there. We just weren't able to close the gap."

Riverside (10-1), the top-ranked team in Southern California, was paced by Robbie Robinson's 20 points and six rebounds and David Norris' 14 points.

Moorpark made 7 of 17 3-pointers, including 3 for 5 from Wortham and 2 for 2 from Matt Mazarei, but its two leading scorers, Dwight Jones and Matt Hornbuckle, were limited to a combined nine points and one assist.

"I thought we really competed really hard," said McCarthy. "We were just having trouble scoring.

I thought we rebounded pretty well with them. I thought we guarded pretty well."

After starting 6-0, Moorpark has dropped two of its last three to ranked opposition. It will play Canyons, which lost 85-76 to San Diego City, in the consolation round today at 1 p.m.

The Raiders won at Canyons, 82-80, Nov. 8.

Click the jump for the full box score.

Pete Carroll addressed the USC football team's loss to UCLA in its last regular season Rose Bowl visit:

"They played great defense on that day. We couldn't move the football. You know, that was the first time in a long time we scored that few points, however you say that. You know, played really well on defense that day. They had a couple plays that put them in scoring position, and that's all they needed.

"You know, if you remember back to that game, like some other games when we've struggled, we struggled early. We didn't convert on a couple third and shorts, third and short, fourth and short. You know, you make those first downs, it's first down on the 30 yardline, whatever, the momentum of the start of the game allows you to get maybe on the board and get some points and it changes everything.

"You know, really, the format of that game was reminiscent of the Oregon State game. Same kind of thing happened, although we played much better on defense that day. That can happen any time. DeWayne Walker is a really good football coach. He knows what he's doing. He has had tremendous success. He's got a lot of stuff up his sleeve he can pull out. He's got a great background in style of defense that can give you problems. They played great last week against Arizona State. You can't tell by the score, but the defense played like crazy in that game. They looked loaded up, fired up, well schooled, great intensity, all that. That's what gives any team a chance to beat somebody. So we have great respect for what they're doing over there and what they're capable of doing and know they have it in them to put together a game that can knock us off. We're going to do everything we can to not let that happen."

USC offensive coordinator responded Thursday night from the ESPN report that he will be named Washington's new head coach:

"Not as of now. Contact has been made. I'm honored to be a candidate. But right now, my focus is on the UCLA game Saturday.

"I have interviewed with Washington. They've interviewed a lot of people. I'm one of a number of candidates, which I'm honored to be. Nothing is finalized in any way, shape or form. There's been some communication. Nothing has been put in writing.

"As far as I'm concerned, I'm a candidate and honored to be. As of right now, Thursday night, I'm getting ready for Saturday. That's ESPN's report, not Washington's or mine. It comes with the territory: job openings and speculation. The key is to focus on the job Saturday and not this conversation.

"I have not been offered the job. The interview went well, learning about each other. I've always been patient regarding head coaching opportunities. I assess each separately. They interview me, and I assess the job as well, like I did with the Oakland job. It's a process. Neither party wants to rush into it.

"We're still playing. We're playing for the conference championship on Saturday. That's my focus.

"Nothing is set up tonight to talk to them.

"Maybe ESPN knows more than I know. Maybe that'll be good news. My focus is our game this week.

"I wouldn't accept it before our game Saturday. The focus is on the game Saturday.

"Pete (Carroll) understands the situation and is on the same page."

The state's two winningest active women's basketball coaches will meet Friday night in the quarterfinals of the Gilcrest Invitational at College of the Sequoias in Visalia.

Cerritos' Karen Welliver (27th year, 555-279, .665) and Ventura's Ned Mircetic (19th year, 539-84, .865) sit fourth and fifth, respectively, on the state's all-time wins list behind Tom Martinez of San Mateo (563), Caren Franci (560), and Colleen Riley (559).

The Falcons and Pirates will play the 8 p.m. nightcap.

At least that was the theme Thursday when Southern California schools were 7-0 over their Northern California counterparts in the first round of the heralded Gilcrest Invitational in Visalia

No. 1S Ventura, No. 2S Mount SAC, No. 9S Antelope Valley, No. 12 Santa Barbara City, No. 13S Riverside, Cerritos and Moorpark all defeated Northern opposition to move into Friday's quarterfinals at College of the Sequoias.

The only surviving Northern California school, Fresno City, did so by beating another Northern school, Lassen. NorCal was a combined 1-8.

"I remember a time when we were the only SoCal team that advanced," said Ventura coach Ned Mircetic.

Northern California has not had a state champion this decade. The last NorCal champion was Sierra, who defeated Ventura in the 1998-99 state final.

Click the link for the Ventura College women's basketball team's 72-38 win over host Sequoias Thursday in the first round of the Gilcrest Invitational.

Gilcrest Invitational, first round

No. 1 Ventura 72, Sequoias 38 FINAL

Donielle Griggs had 16 points, Erika Ward had 14 points and Chanelle Brennan had 10 points as the Pirates, ranked No. 1 in the state, opened the heralded 16-team tourney without starting center Julie Heurung.

Down 16-10 after seven minutes, Ventura used a 25-2 run to take control 33-18. It will play Cerritos tonight at 8 p.m. in a matchup of the two winningest active coaches in the state.

Team records -- Ventura 9-0, Sequoias 5-3.

Updates from California community college women's basketball's top tournament at College of the Sequoias in Visalia:

Thursday's scores

Lower Bracket
No. 13S Riverside 79, No. 14N Sacramento City 71
No. 5N Fresno City 81, No. 10N Lassen 70
Cerritos def. Porterville
No. 1S Ventura 72, Sequoias 38

Upper Bracket
No. 9S Antelope Valley 88, No. 2N San Joaquin Delta 59
Moorpark 72, Solano 64 (Tiffany Hurd scores 26 points)
No. 2S Mount SAC 71, No. 7N San Jose City 65
No. 12S Santa Barbara City 88, Reedley 75

Friday's schedule

Winner's Bracket
No. 13S Riverside vs. No. 5N Fresno City, 4 p.m.
No. 1S Ventura vs. Cerritos, 8 p.m.
No. 9S Antelope Valley vs. Moorpark, 6 p.m.
No. 2S Mount SAC vs. No. 12S Santa Barbara City, 2 p.m.

Loser's Bracket
Sacramento City vs. No. 10N Lassen
Sequoias vs. Porterville, 12 p.m.
No. 2N San Joaquin Delta vs. Solano, 8 p.m.
No. 7N San Jose City vs. Reedley, 4 p.m.

The Moorpark College men's basketball team didn't get the best draw in this weekend's Rancho Vista Shootout at Antelope Valley College in Lancaster.

Or did it?

The Raiders (6-1), coming off its first loss of the season Friday against Fullerton, will open the tournament this afternoon against 9-1 Riverside, which is ranked No. 1 in Southern California and No. 2 in the state coaches' poll.

"We need to play teams like Fullerton and Riverside," said Moorpark coach Remy McCarthy. "They're big. They're physical. They're traditionally good.

"I know the object is to win the tournament, but unless you see some good, big teams, you're going to be in trouble.

Our league has some good teams and, to have any chance, we're going to have to know what we're going up against to have any chance."

Riverside is led by 6-foot-5 guard Robbie Robertson, who averages 16.7 points and 6.7 rebounds per game.

The Ventura College women's basketball team (8-0) will play its first game as the state's No. 1-ranked team tonight in Visalia without starting center Julie Heurung, according to coach Ned Mircetic.

The Buena High product is coming off one of her best games in a Ventura uniform Sunday night. She had 14 points, seven rebounds and two blocks as the Pirates halted the 45-game winning streak of three-time defending state champion and previous No. 1-ranked Mount San Antonio, 65-42, in the final of the VC-Kiwanis Tournament of Champions.

Combined with the loss of the team's other center, Jessica Jameson, last week, Heurung's absence leads the Pirates thin in the frontcourt. Freshman Kris King is expected to get the start tonight, backed up by 5-foot-9 reserve Lacey Escamilla.

Heurung will be attending her sister's wedding Thursday night. She is expected to rejoin the Pirates Friday at the 16-team Gilcrest Invitational.

"She's coming up tomorrow morning with her mom," said Mircetic.

Here's the Visalia Times-Delta preview of the Tom Gilcrest Invitational, the season's elite 16-team tournament this weekend in Visalia, which includes six of the Top 20 team in the state, including No. 1 Ventura (8-0), No. 3 Mount SAC (8-1) and Moorpark (3-3).

Host College of the Sequoias (5-2) opens with the top-ranked Pirates tonight at 8 p.m.

Here's what Giants head coach Luke Vidak told the Visalia Times-Delta of the matchup:

"We're really looking forward to playing the No. 1 team in the state. Ventura has a great program and we are going to have to go hard for 40 minutes. They run, run and run and we can't let down for a second."

The Oxnard College women's basketball team has made a balanced start to the season, winning five of its first 11 games.

"We're a unique team," said head coach Phil Sherman. "We've probably got nine or 10 equal bodies."

Half of Oxnard's 10 players have reached double figures in scoring. Without a double-digit scorer, Oxnard (5-6) has been led by a pair of 5-foot-11 forwards in freshman Charnisha Bradley and sophomore Tonee Martin, who averages 6.7 points and 7.3 rebounds.

The Condors have a chance to get over the .500 mark by sweeping Pacific Coast Conference rivals San Diego City and Southwestern at the Condor Center Friday and Saturday, respectively.

Community College men's basketball

Ventura 87, Los Angeles Valley 72: Ventura makes it seven in a row by Joe Curley in Van Nuys

Game Highlights from HomefieldSports.com:

Will Faiivae's postgame interview:

Community College women's basketball

Community College notebook: Hurd posting strong scoring numbers for Moorparkby Joe Curley

Ventura 87, Los Angeles Valley 72 FINAL

The Ventura College men's basketball team, ranked No. 15 in Southern California, will put its six-game winning streak on the line tonight at No. 10 Los Angeles Valley.

HomefieldSports.com will broadcast the game live on its website.

After dropping its first game of the season Friday against Fullerton, the Moorpark College men's basketball team (6-1) fell one spot to No. 8 in the Southern California coaches' poll.

The Raiders also fell three spots to No. 19 in the state coaches' poll.

After winning the Condor Classic for the fourth straight season, Ventura (7-3), which is on a six-game winning streak, debuted in the poll at No. 15.

Click on the jump to see both polls in their entirety.

Ventura College's Jazmarae Strozier and Steve Hoffman took Player of the Year and Coach of the Year honors for the Western State Conference's North Division.

Strozier, a Buena High product, lead the WSC with 17 goals and 11 assists as a freshman. Hoffman coached the Pirates to their 12th WSC title in 13 seasons and a program best No. 5 ranking in the national coaches' poll.

They were joined on the All-WSC North first team by goalkeeper Adi Pimental, defender Alison McCartney, fullback Jessica Bowsman, forward Alyssa McDonald and forward Jocelyn Coney.

Ashley Cheney, Briana Miller and Dayne Theys of Moorpark and Samantha Lane and Anna Alatorre of Oxnard also earned first team honors.

The second team included Lauren Nelson, Leslie Simon, Jennifer Arauz-Martinez and Carissa Arce of Ventura; Kaitlin Walers and Christina Leon of Moorpark; and Ashley Sims and Natalie Magana of Oxnard.

Ventura's Jaimey Farranto and Courtney Meyers, Moorpark's Leanna Aceves and Katie Rappazzo, Oxnard's Ilse Zaragaza and Gabriela Ambriz, and Santa Barbara City's Laura Spivack, a Moorpark High product, earned honorable mention.

The Ventura College women's basketball team rose to No. 1 in the state poll Tuesday, two days after halting three-time defending state champion Mount SAC's 45-game winning streak in the final of the VC-Kiwanis Tournament of Champions.

The Pirates are 8-0 for the first time since its 38-0 state championships season of 1999-2000.

Click the jump for the full poll

UCLA coach Rick Neuheisel on the USC defense ahead of the 78th city championship game Saturday:

"They've been terrific in terms of tackling. There's been a great mix of pressure and playing off. They've gotten their opponents in a lot of third and long situations, when you do that you become more difficult to attack.

"Their defense is stifling. They just come after you. They're extremely strong at the point of attack.

"Their linebacking corps has been much-heralded, deservedly so.

"Their secondary is probably as big a secondary as we've seen and still runs like a traditional secondary.

"It's a complete defense. It's no surprise that they've run up the numbers that they've run up."

UCLA coach Rick Neuheisel will coach his first UCLA-USC game Saturday:

"We're excited about the challenge that lies ahead, playing our crosstown rival, playing arguably one of the better teams in the country.

Certainly given that this will be our last game, there's no reason to leave anything on the shelf. We've just got to play with everything we've got, have to regrets and leave it all on the field, as they say."

"It's one of those things that you cherish."

"We are in the midst of building a program, it hasn't gone was well as we'd hoped this season. I do see a lot of reason for optimism in the future. I'm eager to just keep building for the future.

"You always want to put on a good showing because it's what people judge you on. But I think people are wise enough to realized that this is now and there's a future regardless of what happens this weekend.

"That doesn't mean we're not going to put everything we've got into it. We're going to try to win the game."

The USC football team will incur a penalty of one timeout per half in order to wear their home cardinal jerseys Saturday against crosstown rival UCLA at the Rose Bowl.

"It's something we've been thinking about for a while," Carroll said Monday on PeteCarroll.com. "From talking to coaches at UCLA over the years and seeing the teams wear their home jerseys growing up, it's something we're going to start up again this weekend.

"This has always been a colorful matchup and we hope everyone enjoys this recognition of both the past and the present state of the rivalry."

The sight, see below, should harken back ot the years when both teams played at the Coliseum.

The Ventura College women's basketball team toppled No. 1 Mount SAC, 65-42, Sunday afternoon in the championship game of the VC-Kiwanis Tournament of Champions.

The Ventura College men's basketball team shocked No. 4 San Bernardino Valley, 99-92, Sunday night in the championship game of the Condor Classic.

Coach Ned Mircetic summed it up:

"Today was a great day for VC basketball... We beat No. 4 and No. 1 and both of them were legit. It's not a fluke."

Mircetic got credit for coaching six wins over the weekend, despite being present for only four of the games.

"But who's counting?" said Mircetic, whose two teams are a combined 15-3 this season.

According to its coaches, the weekend for the Ventura men came together the moment the team eschewed driving separately to nearby Oxnard, instead saying "We'll drive as a team."

"We had a game plan and they executed it," said coach Will Cowen.

"If we keep playing like we are as a team and tough defensively, we can compete with anyone," said coach Jon Wyers.

For the men, Prince Abidoye had 18 points, six rebounds and five assists; Mike Diacos had seven points, five assists and three steals; Jordan Harris had 13 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks; and Dee Pinkard had 10 points, four rebounds and five assists.

Mount San Antonio College women's basketball coach Laura Beeman on her team's 65-42 loss to No. 2 Ventura Sunday afternoon, which snapped the Mounties' 45-game winning streak:

"They played very fundamental basketball. They execute their stuff and exploit the opposition's deficiencies. They did a great job of exploiting our deficiencies tonight."

"No. 1, they played harder than we did tonight."

"It's the good and the bad about being the No. 1 team, everyone guns for you."

"We're going to take some losses this year. We're beatable this year. We're going to have to learn how to bounce back."

"I'm not disappointed in the loss, I'm disappointed that we didn't play hard."

All-Tournament team

Will Faiivae, Ventura (MVP)
Danny Benson, Ventura
Alex Jacobs, San Bernardino Valley
Aaron Edwards, San Bernardino Valley
John Johnson, Oxnard
Shakir Johnson, West Los Angeles

All-Tournament Team

Erika Ward - Ventura (MVP)
Julie Heurung - Ventura
Blair Egardo - Mt. SAC
Britney Lewis - Mt. SAC
Britney Bradley - Canyons
Kenyana "K.K." Martin - Contra Costa