Freshman forward Joe Grahovac kicked off the 3C2A state title game with a strong, comfortable looking layup for the Hornets. If there was a situation that called for the opposite of foreshadowing, this would be it.

City College of San Francisco went on to score the next 13 points of the game in about two and a half minutes. The Rams never looked back the rest of the way, claiming the school’s sixth 3C2A state title in a 75-58 win over FC.

The turnover bug bit the Hornets early, as they committed three turnovers that led to a quick five points for the CCSF.

The Hornets also went over five minutes before scoring another basket, as the momentum had fully swung towards the Rams in this heavyweight bout. Fullerton College head coach Perry Webster was not surprised that CCSF came out swinging.

“We’re the two best programs in the state, and we have the best players. It’s always tough going against them,” said Webster. “They do a great job, and today they were better.”

CCSF sophomore guard Jalen Glenn had the two show stopping plays of the game that got a big roar out of the jam packed gym at Mt. San Antonio College.

Glenn used his defense to create offense, as he intercepted a cross court pass thrown by FC sophomore guard, Justin Davis. As Glenn secured the steal, his speed got him down the court so quickly, he was all alone. That left enough room to complete his takeoff, hit the back scratcher and then slam home the thunderous dunk with two hands. The big play brought the Rams’ bench and fans out of their seats like they had just hit the eject button.

After FC broke San Francisco’s run-and-jump press and got an easy dunk for Grahovac, Glenn decided he needed to answer.

Following some perimeter ball movement, Glenn got the ball in the left corner. Seeing an opening, he ripped toward the baseline, getting to his launching pad. It caught the crowd off guard, as Glenn took off to punch the dunk home over two helping Hornets, the 6 ’11 Grahovac and 6′ 5 freshman guard Darvelle Wyatt, putting the Rams up 52-36 with just over 11 minutes to go in the game.

Glenn’s acrobatics were just another gut punch that stopped any chance Fullerton had trying to mount a comeback for the ages.

Aside from committing 13 turnovers in the game, the real flaw in Fullerton’s game was their outside shooting. They only made one 3-pointer to San Francisco’s 10 makes. It’s hard to come back in a game where one team is trading 2’s for 3’s.

Every time Fullerton tried to chip away at their deficit, San Francisco had a response. The Hornets cut the first half lead down to five points multiple times, but never got the score closer than that in the first half.

Freshman guard Jaqari Miles, fighting to control his emotions, said that something didn’t feel right for the Hornets in this big game.

“We were trying to find open guys [and] get the energy going,” said Miles. “It [the energy] seemed to be a little bit off.”

After a shaky first half that found the Hornets down by nine, Miles came out of the locker room like a man prepared to go scorched earth on whichever Ram tried to guard him.

After CCSF hit a deep 3-pointer to start the second half, Miles checked into the game off the bench, and decided to do his best Michael Jordan impression and take over.

In four straight possessions, Miles hit a tough layup on the baseline. On the very next play, he snagged a defensive rebound and whipped an outlet pass to Davis, who scored a sweeping left-handed layup high off the glass.

Then, after Miles hit a contested layup, he finished his flurry by burying Fullerton’s first and only 3-pointer of the game, bringing Hornet fans off their collective resuscitators and back to life.

Miles shined in his offensive output in this game, as he led all scorers with 23 points, 15 of which came in the second half. Grahovac chipped in 13 points, as the pair were both named to the 3C2A All-Tournament team.

FC again found themselves down only five points when Webster called timeout.

This time was different, so it seemed at first. Fullerton forced a miss and got the stop they needed, looking to have the opportunity to grow their run and make it a one possession game.

Then, a backbreaker, as CCSF’s 6’8 sophomore forward, John Squire, got the offensive rebound deep in the paint, and made the layup through contact from Grahovac, killing the Hornets’ momentum.

“He [Squire] was a hard worker on the glass, getting a lot of good rebounds…. He’s a tough player,” said Grahovac.

Squire, who made the 3C2A All-Tournament team, scored 13 points and secured four offensive rebounds. 3C2A Tournament MVP, sophomore guard Miles Amos, led the Rams in scoring with 20 points. Sophomore guard Rickey Mitchell Jr. also added 14 points on three made 3-pointers.

After Squire’s layup and a 3-pointer from San Francisco’s sophomore guard Ray-John Spears, the Hornets never trailed by less than double digits the rest of the way.

Webster gave CCSF a ton of credit for their play on both ends of the floor, but he also stated that the Hornets did not execute their offensive game plan to the best of their abilities.

“I just didn’t think that we ever really got in a rhythm… we didn’t move the ball very well,” said Webster. “They have really talented guards… and really good players. They also had a few guys we had labeled as non-shooters hit some 3’s. In a state championship game, you kind of need those guys to step up and do that, and their guys did that really well.”

Despite the disappointing loss, Webster held his head up, and kept a calm voice as he expressed a final message to his team.

“It’s all love, all gratitude… Losing sucks, but being able to win 30 games and get to a state championship game is not easy,” said Webster. “A lot of guys go their whole careers and never get anywhere close to being able to be in games like this… I just want them to continue to remain grateful and to continue to love each other.”