The Santa Rosa Junior College women’s basketball team leaned on defensive pressure, ball movement and depth to overwhelm Diablo Valley College 73-17 Friday.
Santa Rosa set the tone immediately by scoring quickly and forcing a string of early turnovers to jump out to a 20-6 lead after the first quarter. The Bear Cubs continued to build momentum in the second quarter by holding Diablo Valley to just 13 points in the first half and never allowing the Vikings to find rhythm.
“We had a hard loss last game, so our big thing was to be strong on defense and to talk a lot,” forward Jordan Washington said. “I think that gave us a lot of energy to start the game.”
Washington led Santa Rosa with a game-high 14 points on 7-for-9 shooting, adding seven rebounds, three assists, a steal and a block in just 12 minutes. Her presence in the paint anchored both ends of the floor.
Offensively, Santa Rosa emphasized movement and cutting rather than settling for static possessions.
“We were working on cutting more and moving more, not just staying in one spot,” Washington said. “That worked a lot for me.”
The Bear Cubs’ defensive communication proved just as impactful. Santa Rosa forced 12 turnovers and limited Diablo Valley to just four field goals for the game.
“In the first quarter we got a whole bunch of steals,” Washington said. “That gave us a lot of energy and really helped the momentum.”
Santa Rosa maintained its intensity in the fourth quarter, continuing to rotate players and control the pace as the Bear Cubs closed out the lopsided win.
Bear Cub Bennett Gaylord high fives her fellow freshman guard Elle Picard after getting fouled by Diablo during the game on Friday, Jan. 30 at home. (Yna Bollock)
Head coach Lacey Campbell credited the team’s focus on sustaining pressure throughout the game.
“I think it’s the depth of our team,” Campbell said. “Not everybody gets a chance to play, so they took their moment and kept playing. We talked about having toughness and making sure we were playing every play, no matter what the score was.”
Guard Elle Picard added 12 points on a perfect 4-for-4 shooting performance, including three 3-pointers and four steals. Picard said early confidence helped fuel the blowout.
“I was just trying to get more shots up,” Picard said. “Having momentum from the start really helped our confidence and execution.”
Santa Rosa finished with 18 assists on 32 field goals and outscored Diablo Valley 22-2 in the third quarter. Thirteen players logged minutes for the Bear Cubs during the game.
“We have to make sure we’re getting the best shot available,” Campbell said. “Against zones, it’s about being aggressive and finding the extra pass.”
Santa Rosa returns to action Tuesday, Feb. 3, at Folsom Lake College with a 7:30 p.m. tipoff.
From left to right, freshman forward Jordan Washington, sophomore forward Kaia Eubanks, sophomore guard Abigail Tacla, freshman guard Elle Picard and sophomore guard Caitlin Baldwin sit at the sidelines waiting for lineup to be read before their game against Diablo Valley College on Friday, Jan. 30 at home.