On Tuesday, the Bear Cubs (20-6, 12-2) hosted the Modesto JC Pirates (4-22, 1-13) in the penultimate Big 8 Conference game. Santa Rosa entered the game on a ten-game win streak and a tie for first place in the Big 8 standings with Sacramento City College. The Bear Cubs opened the game on a 13-2 run in the first five minutes with three points by Guard, Chris Holley, six points (two three-pointers) by Guard, Andrew Pengel, and two-point baskets by Forward, Ezekiel Stallworth and Guard, Yatyn Anderson. After a Modesto made basket, Stallworth drove to the hoop for an uncontested layup. Anderson added two more points to his total at the 12:33 mark, extending the Bear Cub lead to thirteen points at 17-4. Forward, Stephen Ransom and Dave Baraka each added two points for the Bear Cubs after a pair of Pirate free throws. Following two more free throws by Modesto, Holley countered with a driving layup just before the 10-minute mark. The pirates added another pair of free throws, six of Modesto's first ten points came from the charity stripe. Holley drained a three-pointer on the next possession, giving Santa Rosa a 26-10 lead with 9:45 left before halftime. Following another Modesto free throw, the Pirates implemented a zone attempting to limit the Bear Cub offense. Baraka found the soft spot in Modesto's zone and made a layup. The Pirates scored to make the score 28-13, but Guard, Gavin Vogensen made a three-pointer for the Bear Cubs, stretching the lead to eighteen with 7:37 before halftime. Modesto then went on a 4-0 run before Baraka ended it with a made free throw at 5:11. Modesto added five points unanswered, and the Bear Cub lead shrunk to ten. The momentum was swinging in favor of the Pirates, but back-to-back three-pointers by Holley and Pengel stopped the bleeding, making the score 38-22 Santa Rosa with 2:44 before halftime. The Bear Cubs added six more points before the half, four by Pengel and two by Stallworth. The teams headed to the locker room with a 44-26 Santa Rosa lead.
Pengel continued his strong shooting into the second half by hitting a three-pointer at the 18:50 mark, giving Santa Rosa a 47-26 lead. The Santa Rosa lead grew to twenty-three points following an elbow jumper by Stallworth. The Pirates scored four unanswered points, but the Bear Cubs responded with a layup by Ransom on the offensive end. After another 4-0 Modesto run, Santa Rosa responded with a 4-0 run of their own with made baskets by Stallworth and Ransom. With 14:29 left in the game, the score was 55-34 Santa Rosa. Following a made basket by Modesto, the Bear Cubs added six unanswered points with two points each by Stallworth and Ransom, and another three-pointer by Pengel. Modesto scored to stop the 6-0 Santa Rosa run, but Holley responded with a three-point field goal. At 11:09, Santa Rosa had a twenty-seven-point lead, 65-38, their largest of the game. A 9-0 run by Modesto dropped the deficit below twenty points, but Santa Rosa scored on three straight possessions with a dunk by Ransom and two layups by Baraka. The score was 71-47 with just over seven minutes left. Santa Rosa then went scoreless until Guard, Jackson Smyth made a two-point basket with 3:24 remaining, but the Bear Cub lead did not drop under twenty points during the drought. The Bear Cubs added nine more points in the final three minutes courtesy of a three-pointer by Ransom, four points by Holly, and a jumper by Smyth. The Final score, SR: 82, MJC: 57.
Santa Rosa extends their winning streak to 11. The Bear Cubs will travel to Diablo Valley College on Friday to take on the Vikings in the final Big 8 regular season game. With a win, the Bear Cubs clinch at least a share of the Big 8 Title. The playoffs start next week and the Bear Cubs are a likely candidate to host at least their first-round game.