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Mustangs 98, Hawks 62 in basketball
CV boys beaten by Rodriguez in D-II playoffs
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Central Valleys Harinder Sidhu buried six treys on his way to tallying a team-high 18 points against host Rodriguez during Fridays Sac-Joaquin Section Division-II outbracket playoff game. The Hawks suffered a 98-62 loss. - photo by DALE BUTLER/The Courier

The members of Central Valley's varsity boys basketball team watched YouTube videos of Rodriguez leading up to their showdown this past week in the Sac-Joaquin Section playoffs.

"Coach (Darryl Dickson) prepared us for the game," senior guard Harinder Sidhu said. "We just didn't execute. That led to our downfall."

The 18th-seeded Hawks dropped the Division-II play-in contest, 98-62, to the No. 15 Mustangs Friday night in Fairfield.

"They had a really good team," Sidhu said. "We battled our hardest."

Central Valley compiled a 10-16 overall record and placed third in the Western Athletic Conference (6-4) this winter.

Rodriguez improved to 16-9 on the year. The Mustangs tied for second in the Monticello Empire League (7-3).

"We could have done way better," Harinder said. "We could have won league. We accomplished one of our goals. We made playoffs."

Sidhu made six treys en route to pouring in a team-high 18 points versus Rodriguez.

David Serrano totaled 12 points.

Gurshan Chahal and Max Sanchez both collected six points.

Ralph Afortunado and Karnveer Chahal chipped in with five points apiece.

Oso Fregoso tallied four points.

Andres Rojo and Phillip Jackson each had three points.

The Mustangs had three players score in double figures, including Zavier Lucero (27), Braxton Adderly (25) and Mikal Hunter (20).

Central Valley and Rodriguez buried 11 and nine 3-pointers, respectively.

The Hawks never recovered after falling behind by 18 points in the first quarter.

Central Valley trailed 55-23 at halftime. Lucero and Hunter netted 19 and 17 points, respectively.

"It was a little depressing we were down by that much," Sidhu said. "They did whatever they wanted against us."

The Hawks outscored the Mustangs 25-17 in the third quarter.

"Dickson calmed us down and told us what to do," Sidhu said. "And we executed. We gave it our all."

Sidhu and fellow upperclassmen Chahal, Afortunado and Fregoso suited up for Central Valley for the final time.

"It was a great experience," Sidhu said. "I'm going to miss all aspects of the game. I always tried to get better. I stayed after practice to improve my shot."