No. 4 Coronado fends off No. 5 Mojave in boys basketball — PHOTOS
Coronado’s boys basketball team has spent the better part of the last month on the road playing out-of-state opponents.
Coach Jeff Kaufman said he wanted to get the Cougars ready to handle the tough competition in their league. So when Mojave nearly erased a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit Wednesday night in Coronado’s first game against a local team in over a month, the Cougars didn’t waver.
Coronado, ranked No. 4 in the Review-Journal’s Class 5A rankings, held off a late charge from No. 5 Mojave and pulled away for an 81-72 road win.
“Our guys did a good job of keeping their poise,” Kaufman said. “We didn’t go very deep into the bench tonight. That’s what good, mature teams do. Mojave’s good, they’re fast and aggressive, and we were able to withstand it. I credit my guys. It wasn’t pretty, but we’ll take it.”
Sophomore guard Jonny Collins led Coronado (10-8, 3-0, 5A Southern League) with 26 points. Junior wing Lantz Stephenson scored 20 points and was 10-for-10 at the free-throw line for the Cougars.
“This is our first game back,” Collins said. “We’ve been out of town a lot playing against a lot of out-of-town teams just getting ready for league play. It feels good to finally be back home. As long as we stick together, we’ll get wins.”
Trailing 69-59 with over six minutes left in the fourth quarter, Mojave (10-7, 3-2) took advantage of a pair of Coronado turnovers during a 9-0 run to cut the deficit to one point. But the Rattlers wouldn’t get any closer, and the Cougars closed the game on a 10-2 run in the final three minutes.
“We’re battle-tested and not afraid to win a game,” Kaufman said. “Some teams are afraid to lose. You can’t be afraid to win, and we’re not afraid to win. That’s going to help us as we get further into the season.”
Senior guard Josiah Cunningham added 16 points for Coronado, and junior center Tee Bartlett scored 12.
Coronado managed to break through Mojave’s full-court pressure defense with its size advantage and found Bartlett open inside for eight first-quarter points. The Cougars scored all of their points early driving to the basket with layups, dunks or free throws and led 20-16 after the first quarter.
Mojave used a 13-3 run midway through the second quarter to hold a five-point lead with two minutes left. Collins scored eight points in the final 90 seconds, and a 10-2 Cougars run gave them a 40-36 halftime lead.
“Jonny, he’s young. He’s a sophomore, but athletically and offensively he’s gifted,” Kaufman said. “We just got to keep him focused. Sometimes when you’re young, you lose a little focus. When he’s focused, he’s hard to stop.”
C.J. Shaw led Mojave with 29 points. Nathan Sherrard scored all 14 of his points in the first half, and Zacarrion Jackson scored all 10 of his in the second half for Mojave.
Contact Alex Wright at awright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlexWright1028 on X.
