Caden Johnson, Devon Ruger and Eric Madrigal combined for 50 points as Ceres High School's frosh-soph boys basketball program closed out the Western Athletic Conference season with a 71-53 road victory over crosstown-rival Central Valley on Friday.
The Bulldogs won the first meeting between the two teams, 64-46, on Jan. 26 at Phil de la Porte Gymnasium.
"It just feels great winning," said Madrigal, who scored 12 of his 14 points in the middle periods. "I was nervous at halftime. It was 28-28."
Johnson poured in a team-high 19 points for Ceres High, which compiled a respectable 7-5 record in the WAC standings.
Ruger buried four treys and totaled 17 points.
Minder Singh, Haydon Turpin, Adam Welsh and Zach Brown added nine, six, three and two points, respectively.
Terry Brogdon had one point.
"I'm proud of this group," Ceres High head coach Jim Pernetti said. "They have all improved so much. There were kids who couldn't walk and chew gum at the same time at the beginning of the year."
Added Madrigal: "Our hard work paid off."
Hawk Duarte tallied a game-high 21 points for Central Valley, which had a 1-11 mark in conference play. Diego Sanchez, Caselli Richardson, Amrit Chahal, Sidney Long, Juan Manriquez and Daniel Alvarez added 12, six, five, four, three and two points, respectively.
The Bulldogs and Hawks battled to a 28-all tie in the opening half.
Madrigal paced Ceres High with eight points. Johnson and Ruger both collected six points. Singh and Welsh contributed five and three points respectively.
Duarte had 10 points for Central Valley, which held a four-point lead before the Bulldogs capitalized on back-to-back turnovers late in the second quarter. Sanchez scored eight points. Long and Chahal each tallied four points.
The Bulldogs dominated after intermission.
Ceres High took control with a 24-11 run in the third quarter. Ruger, Turpin, Madrigal, Johnson and Singh scored eight, six, four, three and two points, respectively. The Bulldogs forced seven turnovers on defense.
Madrigal provided a spark with his aggressive and unselfish play.
"Stealing passes and making shots helped a lot in the second half," he said.
"They sped up the tempo of the game and we didn't respond," Hawks head coach Mike Rodriguez said. "We stopped taking care of the ball. We just kind of lost our energy."
The Bulldogs won the first meeting between the two teams, 64-46, on Jan. 26 at Phil de la Porte Gymnasium.
"It just feels great winning," said Madrigal, who scored 12 of his 14 points in the middle periods. "I was nervous at halftime. It was 28-28."
Johnson poured in a team-high 19 points for Ceres High, which compiled a respectable 7-5 record in the WAC standings.
Ruger buried four treys and totaled 17 points.
Minder Singh, Haydon Turpin, Adam Welsh and Zach Brown added nine, six, three and two points, respectively.
Terry Brogdon had one point.
"I'm proud of this group," Ceres High head coach Jim Pernetti said. "They have all improved so much. There were kids who couldn't walk and chew gum at the same time at the beginning of the year."
Added Madrigal: "Our hard work paid off."
Hawk Duarte tallied a game-high 21 points for Central Valley, which had a 1-11 mark in conference play. Diego Sanchez, Caselli Richardson, Amrit Chahal, Sidney Long, Juan Manriquez and Daniel Alvarez added 12, six, five, four, three and two points, respectively.
The Bulldogs and Hawks battled to a 28-all tie in the opening half.
Madrigal paced Ceres High with eight points. Johnson and Ruger both collected six points. Singh and Welsh contributed five and three points respectively.
Duarte had 10 points for Central Valley, which held a four-point lead before the Bulldogs capitalized on back-to-back turnovers late in the second quarter. Sanchez scored eight points. Long and Chahal each tallied four points.
The Bulldogs dominated after intermission.
Ceres High took control with a 24-11 run in the third quarter. Ruger, Turpin, Madrigal, Johnson and Singh scored eight, six, four, three and two points, respectively. The Bulldogs forced seven turnovers on defense.
Madrigal provided a spark with his aggressive and unselfish play.
"Stealing passes and making shots helped a lot in the second half," he said.
"They sped up the tempo of the game and we didn't respond," Hawks head coach Mike Rodriguez said. "We stopped taking care of the ball. We just kind of lost our energy."
