They missed layups. They missed jumpers. They missed free throws. Too many free throws.
Before long, the Hawks were down by as much as 16 points. And their guests, the suddenly confident San Mateo Bulldogs, played inspired ball and could sniff a massive upset.
Las Positas headed into halftime trailing 29-22 and struggling to find their rhythm. It was by far the worst offensive performance in a half all season. They’d managed at least 30 points in every half on their way to 14 straight wins to start the season, winning all of them by at least 14 points. Wednesday at the Nest, they had their hands full.
But this is exactly what the Hawks needed: A chance to feel adversity and show their mettle.
“We’ve been waiting for this,” sophomore guard Jorren Edmunds said after totaling 18 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and two steals on Wednesday. “We haven’t had a test all season. We’ve been blowing teams out. And for the freshmen to see that this is what an actual basketball game is, I think that’s great for us and for the sophomores to step up, show composure, leadership.”
The Hawks opened up their Coast Conference-North play with a 72-59 win at home on Jan. 8, over the San Mateo Bulldogs. It continues their historic start to a season, now sitting at 15-0.
But the Hawks have no time to celebrate. For them, it’s all eyes forward to their biggest test of the season. Easily one of the five most important games in program history.
On Friday, Jan. 10, the Hawks head across the Bay Bridge for a showdown with another 15-0 team — the City College of San Francisco. Two of the best JUCO teams in California right now.
The No. 1 Rams host the No. 3 Hawks.
“We’re very appreciative, thankful and excited about the opportunity,” coach James Giacomazzi said. “Now let’s just see where you’re at. It’s really a great challenge and an opportunity to see how do you stack up with the team that is ranked number one in the state right now.”
CCSF — which has five state championships, four coming since 2011 — is one of the premier community college programs in the nation. Las Positas has only beaten the Rams once in the Giacomazzi era — a 91-90 win on Jan. 18, 2017 in San Francisco.
Not only will the Hawks get a chance to claim the No. 1 ranking. But they get to prove they aren’t pretenders who’ve been blowing up inferior competition. A good showing against the big dogs will validate their legitimacy as contenders.
“It has to be a team effort,” McClanahan said. “It can’t be one guy. Can’t be five. It has to be the entire 14 of us. It has to be all of us working together.”
The Hawks defense, which came in allowing the 13th-fewest points per game in the state, kept Las Positas alive despite the offensive struggles. But they needed a spark to ignite the offense.
Edmunds took control to start the second half. He made three of the team’s first four shots, all long midrange jumpers. Then the bench stepped up.
Freshman guard Richard Banks, who has been a defensive stalwart all season, grabbed four steals and three blocks. Freshman guard Coby Christensen made some big shots off the bench. Jaden Woodard gave them energy and hustle, grabbing a team-high five offensive rebounds.
“I just knew I had to be ready,” Woodard said. “I just thought I could bring something else to my team, and rebounding I knew was important. So I was able to go out and do that and we got a lot of extra possessions that ended up bringing the momentum back.”
Christensen was brought in as a threat from the perimeter. But he’s been shaky in his first collegiate season, hitting on only 25% of his 60 attempts. Still, he’s never shy of confidence.
With 13:07 left in the game, he let one fly to try to cut the San Mateo lead to 43-41. The whole Hawks bench went crazy as Christensen followed his splash with a yell. It was his only basket in six shots, but it gave Las Positas some momentum. The Hawks stole the ball from the Bulldogs on the ensuing defensive possession. Christensen fired a pass to Banks in the corner, who rose up and splashed his own triple. The Hawks had their first lead of the game with 12:55 remaining.
SOARING HAWKS: Freshman guard Richard Banks converts a fast-break layup for two of his seven points and four steals off the bench Wednesday against visiting College of San Mateo. He’ll play the biggest game of his college career Friday at San Francisco. (Photo by Jakob Arnarsson/ The Express)
McClanahan carried the Hawks the rest of the way.
In the final seven minutes, he scored 12 of his team-high 20 points. He drilled two monster 3-pointers to put San Mateo in the rearview mirror, followed by a tough driving layup.
Edmunds and McClanahan combined to shoot 15-for-28 from the field, compensating for Elijah Mobley’s rough night shooting (4-for-12). Mobley, who came in averaging 19.1 points, finished with 17, but most of his damage came at the free throw line, where he was 8-for-10.
“Just staying composed, staying in the game,” McClanahan said. “I made some mistakes earlier, missed some shots early in the game, but really just wanted to stay composed.”
Against the Rams, the Hawks’ defense will have its most difficult challenge of the year. It will be strength vs. strength, with the Rams taunting the second-highest-scoring offense in the state, scoring 100 or more in five of their 15 wins.
San Francisco is led by sophomore guards King-Njhsanni Wilhite and Rickey Mitchell Jr., who combined to average 27.1 points per game. Three-point shooting could be a key difference, with the Rams the better team from deep. Wilhite and Mitchell Jr. are both shooting above 40% from behind the arc.
The Rams are also more battle-tested than the Hawks coming in. They have already twice matched up with West Valley, last year’s undefeated state champions, beating them by four on both occasions. It is part of why many consider the Rams the favorites to take the throne this year.
For the Hawks, beating the Rams figures to require their most reliable asset — their defense.
The speed and intensity with which the Hawks play force teams to make multiple mistakes against them. They have the most steals per game in the state with 16.7 per game, while forcing the fifth most turnovers per game. Banks and the Mobley twins are ball Hawks who aggressively press up against their man and force ball-handlers to turn. Usually, someone from the Hawks is waiting to trap or gamble for the steal.
Their defense fuels their transition game, where the Hawks’ perimeter players are most potent.
“I think a lot of times people, when you play good teams like San Francisco, you kind of change your identity,” Giacomazzi said. “I think that’s a mistake. I think you are who you are. You got to play to your identity.”
Offensively, they will be carried by the same top three scoring leaders against the Bulldogs — Mobley, McClanahan and Edmunds. But they figure to need some others to make timely shots and be a force on offense. That includes big man Mecca Okereke,who came off the bench against San Mateo as Las Positas went with a small lineup.
What the Hawks can most certainly use is a hot night from 3-point range.
San Francisco has made the eighth-most 3-pointers in the state (146). Las Positas ranks No. 56 in California in 3-pointers made (93).
The Rams average 95.6 points per game. Even if they limit San Francisco, the Hawks will still need to get closer to their average of 88.8 points per game. That will require somebody to have a big game.
“Just kill,” McClanahan said. “Just go hard as I can and bring my team along with me. I believe that we can win. We’re gonna take that No. 1.”
TOP PHOTO: Elijah Mobley flexes and roars during the Hawks’ rally from behind against San Mateo. (Photo by Jakob Arnarsson/ The Express)
Jakob Arnarsson is the Sports Editor of The Express. Follow him on X, formally Twitter, @JakobA2004
