The Bivouac

Shafter 46, Wasco 39

2012-01-27T22:40:00.000-08:00

Sometimes you have to win ugly. This was one of those times. The Generals went up 7-0 to start the game, but ended the first quarter on the wrong side of a 16-2 run. Wasco failed to score in the second period and the game went into halftime with the Generals leading 23-16. The margin didn't change much over the half and the game ended with Shafter 7 points ahead.

Shafter 66, BCHS 61

2012-01-24T22:08:00.000-08:00

This was a good win. As against Taft, the Generals rallied defensively to limit the effectiveness of a very good offensive player. Tyler Harris made some shots, but Jesse Samaniego and T.J. Parsons only gave him tough looks. He earned everything he got.

It was a slog of a first half, with lots of fouls on both sides. The feet of BCHS guards had difficulty staying with Shafter's guards, forcing them to defend with their hands, grabbing and holding around the perimeter. Shafter bigs were swinging for blocks and got called for them. Both teams went into the double bonus. It was 33-32, BCHS at halftime. The Generals stayed close largely thanks to some unusually good free throw shooting.

Shafter led 47-44 at the end of the third and began to stretch the lead early in the fourth thanks to the play of the big men. Tyler Gonzalez made a bunch of big second half shots. Cyrus Parsons rebounded well. He also had the play of the night, catching a lob from his brother on one side of the hoop, brushing the net on his way to other side to lay it in.

The Generals improve to 12 and 5 with the win and are now 3 and 1 in SSL play. You should come watch and cheer on Friday when the Generals play the Wasco Tigers at home. This is a team that competes and wins and deserves your support.

Shafter 52, Taft 42

2012-01-17T22:12:00.000-08:00

Defense and rebounding won this for the Generals. The team made clear early that Taft's dynamic duo of Lopez and Gee (who are as good as any two players in the SSL) were going to have to work for everything they got. They didn't get much. T.J. Parsons played his usual role of defensive stopper, keeping the ball from Lopez and warming it up whenever it did find his hands. But it was the help defense that was the key. Tyler Gonzalez stayed close the bucket forcing Taft to shoot over him while the guards clogged lanes and flew at three point shooters. It was a recipe for contested mid-range shot. Dear readers, contested mid-range shots are the building blocks of losing offense.

This was easily the best win of the year for the Generals. At the start of SSL play, Taft was the clear favorite to win league. They had just beaten an Independence team that, even after the loss is ranked 15th in the section and 4th in Kern County. Since then, Taft lost a close one to BCHS after blowing a big lead. Shafter now goes up the mountain to Tehachapi 11 and 4 on the season and 2 and 0 in league play.

Correct me if I am wrong, but it looks to me like you have to go back to the 1992-93 season to find a team with a better record to start the season than 11 and 4. That team started 14 and 3. We can talk endlessly about schedule strength (the 92-93 team had to face Garces twice in league, but they also played Avenal - and only beat them by 2), however there can be no question that this is a team with potential to go far as they continue to improve.

Also, I didn't see it, but heard that the JV team won their game by 1.

Shafter 58, Arvin 33

2012-01-17T21:26:00.000-08:00

This win pushed Shafter to 10 and 4.

Shafter 62, McFarland 41

2012-01-13T06:02:00.000-08:00

This game wasn't as close as the score suggests. The outcome was pretty clear by halftime and Wiebe was able to distribute playing time with liberality. The Generals are now 9 and 4, their best start in a decade.

Shafter 62, Lindsay 53

2012-01-07T05:12:00.000-08:00

Shafter 62, Lindsay 53
At LHS
SHS (8-4): Millwee 3, Gamez 11, T. Parsons 9, Senoran 5, Samaniego 9, C. Parsons 15, Bloemhof 4, T. Gonzalez 6.
JV, FS: SHS d. LHS

This was a very physical game in a hostile gym against a solid opponent. Games like this test the heart and guts of a team and the Generals stepped up and played what was probably their best game of the season. The guards handled pressure and took care of the ball, the bigs battled for and won boards. As a bonus, Shafter also preserved a winning streak over Lindsay that stretches back to the 1948-49 season.

It is also great to see that the Frosh-Soph and JV teams both won. The future of Shafter basketball is bright.

Update

2012-01-04T21:58:00.000-08:00

Really lagging on the scores. Sorry.
At the Woodlake Tournament after Exeter, it was
Shafter 79, Elizabeth Learning Center 49
Shafter 39, Orosi 50
Shafter 62, Woodlake 35
And tonight at home: Shafter 41, Kern Valley 34

The Generals are now 7 and 4. This is the best start since the 2006-07, which opened with 7 wins and 4 losses before the team dropped the next three contests and then went undefeated in SSL play. The 2002-03 team also started 7 and 4, but lost the next two games. In 2001-02, the team started 10 and 2 before running into trouble. So if this team can beat a tough Lindsay team on the road Friday, it would be the best start in a decade.

Shafter 51, Exeter 39

2011-12-26T21:29:00.000-08:00

I had a great trip to lovely Woodlake. As you might expect with a name like Woodlake, the town feels like it is right in the shadow of the Sierras. And from short stay, it also feels like a mining/logging influenced town, even though it probably isn't. Maybe because it reminds me of Morehead, Kentucky, a town definitely influenced by resource extraction and also home of Morehead State (and a nice little coffee shop called the Fuzzy Duck), which I (and probably you) had only heard of because they occasionally make the NCAA tournament. And so we come back to basketball.

I should really start taking notes at these games. The big picture was this - Shafter started slow, but forced a lot of turnovers, took the lead in the second half, and made free throws at the end.

This makes three wins in a row for the Generals. Good work, fellas!

What the 6th Man Does

2011-12-19T07:29:00.000-08:00

There is a home court advantage. This is true across sport and level. Calpreps says the home teams gains about 3 points of margin in high school basketball, all else being equal.

This Freakonomics post summarizes research suggesting that most of the advantage is due to officiating, not travel or playing in front of supportive fans.

Adding to their evidence, I'd like to draw your attention to a super cool website that keeps stats on officials. This is a list of NCAA basketball officials, by the number of games they have called this year. The column labeled "HM" is the "Home Margin" of fouls. A negative number means that the official has been on crews that called fewer fouls on home teams than visiting teams. A positive number means the official has been on crews calling fewer fouls on the visiting team. If you go down the list you don't find a visitor friendly official until #74 - Winston Stith. He is the only one on the list. To further emphasize how rare this is, consider that even visitor loving Mr. Stith, in his 16th year of officiating, has had a negative Home Margin for the first fifteen.

Shafter 42, Wasco 24

2011-12-17T16:00:00.000-08:00

It was close through a half of less than beautiful basketball. The second quarter ended with Angelo Senoran banking a three pointer in from high on the glass. That gave the Generals a 13-11 lead. The offense came a little easier in the second half and Shafter pulled away. As always, the victory over Wasco left a pleasing aroma in the gym.

Shafter 50, South 48

2011-12-16T22:30:00.000-08:00

The Generals continued their success against the directionals in 2011. As against West, both teams had some success pressing and running. Shafter stretched out to a ten point lead just before the end of the third, but South whittled the lead down with steals and by forcing fouls. With less than 30 seconds left in the game, the Rebels sunk a contested corner three pointer to tie the score at 48. Shafter got the ball to Cyrus Parsons underneath the basket for an easy basket and less than 3 seconds for South to heave a final, futile shot.

Lots of positives tonight. Angelo Senoran has really impressed me defensively this year and in this game. Tyler Gonzalez seems to get better every game at utilizing his size and abilities. He stayed home more often, blocked shots, and did a good job on the offensive end too. Kyle Millwee continues to grow up quickly, even showing some Laughlin fearlessness at times. Cyrus Parsons, Jesse Samaniego, and Ted Bloemhof bring a high level of inside strength and toughness to this General squad. Erik Gamez knocked down a good looking three tonight. He is a good shooter and I was glad to see him get that look and take advantage. The game ball, however, would have to go to TJ Parsons. The elder Parsons was a winged, clawed, creature of myth at the defensive end. He is all defender and took the ball almost at will. Good job Generals.

Shafter 44, Rosamond 51

2011-12-16T22:28:00.000-08:00

Battle and scrap in the old gym. Tough game.

Shafter 49, Tehachapi 65

2011-12-16T22:23:00.000-08:00

Tehachapi's Lange is mercifully graduating this year. He's good.

Shafter 38, Frazier Mountain 39

2011-12-06T06:14:00.000-08:00

It is never good to lose and losing to Frazier Mountain is especially hard because they are usually pretty bad. However, there are a couple of mitigating factors. First, this Frazier Mountain team is not bad. They had good size and athleticism and most of all, they shot very well. 24 of Frazier Mountain's 39 points came from three pointers. For the most part, those were contested shots. With few exceptions, Shafter's defense kept Frazier Mountain out of the paint and did a good job of getting after loose balls and rebounds. Second, offensively, the Generals were getting lots of shots inside both through penetration and passes to the bigs. When that happens, they will typically make layups or get fouled. In what I would regard as something of a fluke, neither of those things happened very much. The Generals missed a ton of 3 foot shots and the officials were not inclined to bail us out. In the second half, despite Shafter constantly going inside, Falcon defenders were only tagged with 3 fouls - one with 6 seconds left when they were trying to give one. Shafter shot no free throws in the second half.

Shafter 63, West 61

2011-11-30T22:47:00.000-08:00

The Generals got off to a good start with a win against West High at home. It was the first time Shafter has beaten West since the 1988-89 season.

Shafter started quickly and led 19-12 at the end of the first quarter, but saw that lead erased in the second quarter as West was able to force turnovers with their press and force the the entire General front line to the bench with foul trouble. West led 36-29 at half. I missed the third quarter because I was taking my kids home. (More dedicated bloggers can email their applications) It must have gone okay because by the time I was back in the gym with six minutes to play, the game was tied at 52. From there it was back and forth. The Generals put my quantity over quality views on free throws to the test by making 3 of 13 in the fourth quarter, but it and they prevailed. West heaved a contested three at the end of the game, which missed.

The Most Important Part of a Winning Team is the Winning Part

2011-11-28T16:52:00.000-08:00

This is a companion post to the Moneyball post below. It's been in the hopper for a while. Just something I needed to get off my chest.

People who put their opinions out in public are lucky that almost everyone forgets them immediately.

Consider Bill Plaschke. His opinions are reliably wrong, and yet he works for one of the largest papers in the country. Bill Plaschke's every column is a microcosm of the fact-free, eternal-present-with-selective-hindsight universe that is sport opinion.

When sports opinionators like Plaschke are asked to explain success and failure, they are free to say crazy things and often do. The Angels or the Dodgers, or the Lakers or the Clippers, or USC or UCLA win or lose because the top guy got mad when someone played a prank or didn't. They put a rally monkey on the big video screen, or didn't. They steal bases and sacrifice or don't. They let the kids be kids, or they impose discipline and order... You get the idea.

The key move here is to go from these trivial matters to the meaning of life itself. This is the work of "intangibles." Intangibles are the incantation of a sports religion. No one doubts Tim Tebow's monotheism, but that hasn't kept Skip Bayless from turning him into a totem who uses powerful medicine of competitiveness and will to do magic.

Basically, take any difference of style and blow it into the matter of substance, overlay vague generality and viola! After the results are in, it is easy to suggest that this particular difference mattered and that this difference is an expression of some deep and wide difference that sustains the universe.

Sports opinion is not unique in this. Due to a bout of academia, I spent several years of my life in libraries reading through decades of business writing - annual reports, trade journals, news stories, motivational books, speeches, you name it. I didn't learn much about how to run a business, but I did develop an appreciation for Plaschkesque hokum and hindsight bias. Most instructive were articles like "How Xerox Stays at the Cutting Edge" at the moment it wasn't. Business disasters were another favorite. The Plaschke's of the business world were always ready to explain why an Enron's success is driven by their great culture of innovation (or whatever) until Enron went bust. Then they explained why the Enron culture or leadership doomed it to failure. Too many motocross trips for the executives and so on.

In all of this noise, results are what matter. Teams that win are winning teams. It may seem obvious, but some people will try to tell you that winning teams have some magical positive feelings and "chemistry" that make them win. They are usually confusing cause and effect. It's true that most winning teams get along and feel good about their team. But that's because they win. It's true that good teams focus on results, while bad teams make excuses. That is mostly because good teams like their results and bad teams don't.

The lesson: if you want to have the culture of a winning team, the most reliable way to get it is to win. The most reliable way to win is to do the things that consistently have an positive impact on the odds of winning. Those things are not magical.

Underdogs and Inefficient Markets

2011-09-25T14:29:00.000-07:00

I usually remember the most embarrassing moments of my childhood best: the time I almost burned my face off trying to light a pile of weeds, the day a kid named Perfecto (fed up with my yappin') lifted me above his head, and dropped all 75 pounds my 5th grade body on his knee, the pass I launched into the Centennial pep band... But, reading about the movie Moneyball today, I remembered something that raised my opinion of younger me.

Baseball cards were a big deal in the early 1990s. Who knows why people started paying real money for cards, but they did. And it meant that those of us in the target market all had dads with a story of attic fortune tossed by Grandma some spring cleaning ago. An industry grew up this regret and stories of regret. New card brands and special series were coming out all the time. Card shops were everywhere. Personal finance magazines featured 40 year-olds who were "investing" for retirement in baseball cards.

Of course, this was a classic bubble and I shouldn't have wasted my pre-teen money-making schemes on it. However, I am proud to say that in my card trading, I had hit upon the value of knowing value. I would study the Beckett price guide in hopes of liberating unappreciated pieces of neighborhood collections, usually by exploiting an inflated view of a favorite player.

Unfortunately, other kids started to (rightly) suspect something mercenary in my interest in (Beckett favorites) Frank Thomas and Ray Lankford. But like with Moneyball, it was just a matter of time before my trading partners started looking at the same information I was anyway. Competitive advantages erode and looking up Beckett prices was a particularly weak advantage. Still, I love the idea that you can smart your way to victory through an more accurate understanding of value. I am glad that younger me loved that idea too.

In high school basketball, I have some hunches about valuation. Here is my list:

Overvalued:

1. Mid-range jumpers - A 15 foot jump shot should either be a 20 footer for three or a five footer with a chance to get fouled. While teams do not avoid the three on principle the way they used to, the mid-range shot is still too big a part of most offenses. Don't shoot it. Don't practice it. Don't play people who shoot it or practice it.

2. Free throw percentage - Practice getting to the line. You'll make enough.

3. Thinking while playing - This is more a case of underestimating cost. Thinking is too slow. Anything important should be 90% habit. This is a corollary of the planning fallacy - the cost in time required for teaching a new play and poor execution are higher than you think.

4. Enrollment - Pet peeve. Tehachapi leaving the SSL is hollow vindication because few people recognize how completely normal and predictable Tehachapi's dominance was.

Undervalued:

1. Practice time - Practice time varies based on a few factors. School and district rules about practice vary greatly. These limits are most severe in the Kern High School District and function as a kind of regressive tax on schools where the kids don't play on club teams. Then, there is efficiency. Variation in what gets done within a 2 hour practice is very high.

2. Fouls - The best outcome for the offense is getting fouled. Players who can get fouled without high turnover numbers are worth a lot. Players who can win possessions and stop penetration without fouling are worth a lot.

3. Possessions - Use of counting stats and per game averages really distorts the picture.

Jelmini Dominates the Pac-10 Discus

2011-05-15T15:45:00.000-07:00

This brought me out of hibernation.

None of the competitors were within 20 feet of her best mark of 197'11".

Girls Team's Run Ends

2011-03-06T05:57:00.000-08:00

The Shafter girls made the final four of the section, losing to eventual Valley Champs, Ridgeview. Congratulations on a great season!

Shafter 37, Wasco 34

2011-02-18T21:50:00.000-08:00

Shafter trailed by 9 at half, but scrapped and battled and finally caught Wasco with about 3 to play, then held on for the win. Shafter won all six basketball games tonight, plus the soccer playoff game. Most of the big crowd left satisfied. A good night to be a General.

Shafter 48, Tehachapi 62

2011-02-13T07:50:00.001-08:00

SHS (11-13, 4-4 SSL): Martinez 11, T. Parsons 4, Samaniego 6, Anzurez 10, C. Parsons 7, Gonzalez 10.

THS (12-12, 6-2 SSL): Farewell 14, Hedberg 13, Lange 11, Garrett 8, Smith 2, Scaggs 6, Phillips 3, Knudson 5.

JV: THS d. SHS; FS: SHS d. THS

Shafter 67, Taft 57

2011-02-08T20:45:00.000-08:00

The Generals led the whole way, but not comfortably, especially with McPherson shooting the lights out from three. Everyone on Shafter played well to my eyes, but a couple of performances stand out.

First, Alex Martinez has really matured at point guard. He played an outstanding game on both ends of the floor. He also had the play of the game. With about three or four minutes to play and a 7ish point Shafter lead, Alex stole a pass, drove right at Blake McPherson along the right side of the key, stopped, spun to the left and went up to get the bucket and a foul. He made the free throw and Taft was never close again.

Greg Anzurez, to no one's surprise has been a really good and occasionally dominant player in his senior year. He had a three and a handful of his patented backdoor cuts. I don't ever get tired of watching Greg finish those.

Finally, Mason Gonzalez deserves special mention. I don't have any photos, but he made good things happen when he was in the game. He collected some baskets, but I was most impressed with how well he defended.

1991-92, Shafter 57, Garces 61

2011-02-07T07:12:00.001-08:00

Shafter 57, Arvin 36

2011-02-05T05:36:00.000-08:00

And if you look at the quarter by quarter scores, it was even more lopsided. 32-16 at half, 50-20 to start the third. The Generals took care of business last night. Good job.

SHS: Millwee 4, Martinez 5, P. Parsons 5, Samaniego 4, Jara 10, M. Gonzalez 6, Anzurez 12, Serna 2, C. Parsons 6, T. Gonzalez 7.

AHS (1-5 SSL): Solorio 6, Perez 2, Miranda 18, Williams 7, A. Cordova 3.

1-21-1992 Shafter 60, Wasco 54

2011-01-31T22:19:00.000-08:00

1999 Shafter-Wasco, Clay Watson

2011-01-31T20:36:00.001-08:00

The 1998 Tehachapi Game in Shafter

2011-01-31T18:33:00.001-08:00

The 2011 Tehachapi Game in Shafter

2011-01-31T07:54:00.001-08:00

The 2007 Tehachapi Game in Shafter

2011-01-30T14:45:00.000-08:00

Enjoy

Shafter 33, Wasco 50

2011-01-28T22:22:00.000-08:00

Not pretty. Wasco made shots, especially threes. I'd guess they made about half of their threes. Most of those were contested, but not all of them. Overall, I thought the defensive effort was pretty strong, a couple of lapses notwithstanding. On the other end, Wasco did a good job of swarming the post and getting out on Anzurez.

It seems to me that Wasco and Shafter have played at the poles of their ranges in the two meetings this year.

BCHS Wins

2011-01-25T21:48:00.000-08:00

Alex Martinez, after his breakout performance against Tehachapi, was ill and out of uniform. The trio of Angelo Senoran, T.J. Parsons, and Kyle Millwee filled in admirably. They have all grown as ball handlers. It doesn't show up in the stat sheet, but I continue to be impressed by an as yet raw Jimmy Laughlin-esque presence in Millwee (I know, I know, but there it is). Greg Anzurez was without the service of the "N" in his name tonight (per the vaudevillian BCHS announcer), but he played very well nonetheless, making his presence felt on both ends. The state of Mark Jara's union with Tyler Harris is strong. Jara shadowed Harris and held him well below his average. In fact, Harris was so ineffective that he sat much of the game. Unfortunately, Shafter may have helped the Eagles discover that they are better without their star.

The game was tied mid-way through the second quarter and Shafter ended the half trailing by 3 (I think). But BCHS went on a run to start the third sans Harris and never looked back. They have a lot of good, good basketball players.

Every time I go to BCHS, my head is full snark and snicker. The whole place just strikes me as funny in its ostentatious piety and small timey efforts at being big time. That might just be the resentment talking, though.

UPDATE: The Shafter girls team is cruising. Check out this article about their game against Bakersfield Christian.

Blog Abuse

2011-01-25T13:19:00.000-08:00

Those of you interested in my day job might want to check out the Shafter Readers page on the facebook.

Shafter 59, Tehachapi 56 (OT)

2011-01-22T13:08:00.000-08:00

Shafter 59, Tehachapi 56 (OT)

THS (2-1 SSL): Knudson 4, Phillips 9, Lange 20, Hedberg 13, Scaggs 10

SHS (2-1 SSL): Martinez 18, T. Parsons 4, Samaniego 4, Anzurez 12, C. Parsons 4, T. Gonzalez 17

Notes: Shafter senior Alex Martinez made a 3-pointer as time expired in regulation to force overtime.

Due to mis-scheduling on my part I missed another game. It was a doozy. I watched the video. Alex Martinez played his best game of the year, racking up steal after steal and scoring off of some of them. I would be surprised if he didn't have at least 10 picks.

Shafter was down two and fouled Tehachapi's point guard, Lange with six seconds left. He made the first and missed the second. Shafter got the ball to Alex Martinez, who pump faked the first defender and then shot with the hand of the second in his face. The shot hit high on the backboard, rim, backboard, basket. Shafter took the lead in overtime and secured the win. Congratulations to the team on a very good win.

Shafter 43, Taft 46

2011-01-18T21:11:00.000-08:00

The Generals lost a tight one. They had a 4 point lead with less than 2 minutes but couldn't get across the line first.

Shafter Football Position

2011-01-18T06:12:00.000-08:00

In news that is old to most of you, Shafter High is looking for a new football coach. This time around, there are an unusual number of qualified Shafter alumni available, any of whom would be great to have. Zach Ewing has an article today about one of them - friend of the Bivouac and all around good guy Jerald Pierucci.

Alumni Football Game

2011-01-17T18:44:00.000-08:00

Passed on by a reader -

There is an alumni game in the making put on by Alumnifootballusa.com, Shafter vs Wasco full contact football in pads. & they are working out the details for game day & where it will be held! Zach Peters Class of 04 is the captain phone number 661-910-3392, practice is Monday& Wednesday at 5 & Saturday & Sunday at 4.

Carmelo Anthony and the Necessity of Shot Creation

2011-01-17T06:42:00.000-08:00

Nerd-hero Nate Silver has a nice post on Carmelo Anthony over at the NYT.

Anthony is a controversial player among those who devote their time to analyzing basketball statistics. The reason is as follows: although he scores a lot of points, he does not do so especially efficiently.

At the team level, efficiency is everything. By the rules of basketball, possession alternates between teams, so with very few exceptions the team that is most efficient with those possessions wins. This insight has led to efficiency-based systems of evaluating individual players, which are some variation on this formula: points scored/(shots+turnovers-offensive rebounds). Such formulae work pretty well for similar players in similar situations, but have a couple of blind spots, one of which is shot creation. This is why Silver thinks his fellow pointy heads are missing Anthony's value.

Because he is able to score from anywhere in the court, Anthony draws attention and defenders away from his teammates, sometimes leaving them with wide-open shots. He also allows them to be more selective about the shots that they choose to take, since they know that Anthony can usually get a respectable shot off before the 24-second clock expires if needed.

And sure enough, Silver finds that guys who have played with and without Anthony for significant minutes are more efficient with him. He adds the most value with a bunch of rebounder/defender types. They aren't looking to shoot and because Anthony is on their team, they don't need to.

Belated SSL Preview

2011-01-16T14:01:00.000-08:00

Shafter lost to Mira Monte again and beat Arvin in the first game of SSL play. Now we have a month of SSL play.

According to Calpreps.com (love that site, by the way), BCHS is favored by a mile. Here are the Freeman Ratings for the SSL as of now. These numbers represent the expected margin were a team to play the team that was right at the middle of all teams nationally.

BCHS	7.8
Tehachapi	-2.8
Taft	-4.3
Wasco	-6.8
Shafter	-7.5
Arvin	-12.8

For comparison, the 08-09 BCHS team that was 10 and 0 in league had a 13.8 rating. The 06-07 Shafter team that was 10 and 0 in league had a 5.3 rating (Tehachapi ended up with a 12.7 despite three league losses on the strength of their pre and post-season performance). The bottom of the league is actually pretty strong this year. Despite its unimposing record, Arvin has contended with some good teams. In most years, Arvin's -12.8 would put them in the middle of the SSL pack.

Tehachapi has been without diaper dandy Lange for most of the season, so I expect them to improve going forward.

I am coming to believe that Wasco just is better than they get credit for and their number here supports that belief, so does the fact that they were five points from Tehachapi with Lange. The Tigers are essentially an all-senior squad and the Alanis-Rodriguez core is in its third season in that position. I'd like to see Shafter beat them twice in league, but I don't think it will be easy.

Lindsay Streak Preserved

2011-01-08T08:03:00.000-08:00

Shafter beat Lindsay for the 12th straight time last night. That is a streak that goes back to the 1948-49 season, the year that the Generals also suffered their first and only loss to the Cardinals. An interesting thing about the streak is that it includes games with some of the losingest Shafter teams. The '48-'49 team only won 4 games. The '65-'66 Shafter squad was 2 and 20. One of those two wins was a four point win over Lindsay. The '95-'96 team was 4 and 21 and the first Shafter win that year as a two point victory over Lindsay.

This Lindsay team is pretty good and last night was the best victory of the season so far for Shafter.

Two Close Ones, One W

2011-01-07T21:22:00.000-08:00

The last two nights have been fun. Frustrating at times, thrilling at times, but lots of fun.

Last night, South was in town with the full William Golding, so you know it was intense in the stands. It was back and forth all night until things started looking bleak in the fourth. Shafter trailed by three as time was running out and the ball found Cyrus Parsons at the top of the key. He released a high arcing three point attempt at the buzzer and hit all net - the inside part!

In overtime South built a small lead, but Shafter battled back and had a chance with about 2 seconds, the ball, and the length of the floor to go. Cyrus Parson cocked his golden arm and painted a rainbow through the rafters (miraculously it didn't hit anything) to a waiting Tyler Gonzalez, but the ball was batted and time ran out. 45-47.

Tonight, hosting Lindsay, I came with the good cheer that comes from two straight nights of Shafter basketball. My spirits were only slightly diminished by some bizarre officiating. I don't think Shafter was disadvantaged by the officiating on the whole and I don' t want to dwell on it, but let me say that there was some weird stuff. For example, there was a play at the end of the half where Lindsay, in a rush to heave a length of the court shot, stepped over the baseline in-bounding the ball. A second was restored to the clock and Shafter had a chance to lob the ball to big man Tyler Gonzalez for a pre orange slice and Capri-Sun cheapy. But as the teams lined up, a Lindsay player kept pushing T.J. Parsons and the official told him to stop and then walked him over to the Lindsay coach and told him to remove him from the game. Both teams were in the bonus, but no foul was called, just removal from the game. Then, as the ball was passed to him, Tyler Gonzalez pushed off and was not given the option of sitting in time out. Instead his team was punished in accordance with the rules and the opponents given the opportunity to shoot free throws. (UPDATE: Coach Wiebe, who knows the rules a lot better than I do, told me that the official didn't have the option of calling a personal foul in a dead ball situation like that. They could call a technical foul or nothing, which helps to make sense of the official's decision.)

Yes, I do feel better now thanks.

The game went back and forth, but Lindsay built a ten point lead with 4 minutes to play. At that point T.J. Parsons and Alex Martinez stepped up the pressure and won some possessions from the hands of the enemy. Shafter was back in the thick of it and with less than a minute to play Martinez stole the ball and pushed ahead to Tyler Gonzalez, who pulled up for a mid-range jumper. At that moment, I suspect (based on the collective gasp "no!") that Shafter fans were not entirely satisfied with the shot selection, but they were satisfied with the result as it went through the net and tied the game. After Lindsay scored again, it was Alex Martinez's turn to be the hero. He was fouled and sunk both for the lead. Lindsay evened the score once more and Shafter had one last chance to win or tempt fate with overtime. The ball came to Tyler Gonzalez. He won a battle of fingertips and was fouled for a chance to shoot two with 4 seconds to play. He made the first for the lead. The second missed, but bounced around long enough so that the Lindsay shot was long and unlikely, sailing wide right.

Atascadero Tournament

2010-12-30T06:41:00.000-08:00

In three years at Atascadero, Shafter has played Santa Maria and Lompoc three times each, Atascadero twice, and Templeton once. This year, the match-ups were the same as last year - Atascadero, Santa Maria, and Lompoc.

The score in Game 1 was : Shafter 36, Atascadero 74
Atascadero is a team that is currently ranked as high as the best teams in the Valley. The score is similar to last year's.

In Game 2 Shafter faced Lompoc, a team that beat last year's Generals 56-32. This year Shafter was victorious with a score of 55-41.

In the Consolation Championship, Shafter faced Santa Maria. Santa Maria won by seven last year. Shafter won 49-38 this year.

Things are looking up. These are two solid wins. After the New Year, the Generals have two home games that should be good tests. South is favored slightly in the first and Lindsay by a little more in the second, but these should be good games.

Kiwanis Tournament So Far

2010-12-22T06:02:00.000-08:00

I am going to miss the Kiwanis Tournament this year, something like a purgatorial detention in my old way of saying. Here is what I have learned from emails and the news.

Mira Monte 73, Shafter 57

MMHS (3-3) -- Wright 16, Barboza 2, McQuennie 8, Carter 11, Trimble 4, Lloyd 16, Womack 16.

SHS (3-4) -- Millwee 2, Martinez 2, T. Parsons 2, Senoran 2, Jara 11, Reeves 4, Anzurez 10, C. Parsons 12, T. Gonzalez 12.

Mira Monte, enjoying the springy floors of the old gym, couldn't resist throwing down a dunk in warm-ups, giving Shafter two free throws and the ball to start the game. After that unusual start, Shafter fell behind early and clawed within 10 late, but couldn't catch Mira Monte. Mark Jara 11 points are noteworthy. I understand he played very well.

In the second game, it was Shafter 45, Kern Valley 32. The Generals had a hard time figuring out the Broncs 2-3 zone early and were down 11-3 at the end of the first quarter, but righted the ship in time. Mark Jara had another solid game and Cyrus Parsons had a big game, scoring 20.

Shafter 45, K.Valley 32

SHS - Millwee 2, TJ Parsons 2, Jara 4, Reeves 2, Anzures 5, C. Parsons 18, Gonzalez 12

KVHS - Lawson 2, Hernandez 8, Gargile 2, Russell 4, Peaslee 10, Gibson 2, Hodge 4

Highland 74, Shafter 58

HHS -- O'Leary 20, Vlahos 8, Torres 1, Richmond 21, Meyer 9, Jones 10, Pasqua 2, Owens 2

SHS -- Millwee 2, Martinez 1, TJ Parsons 9, Senoran 2, Samaniego 3, Jara 1, Reeves 5, Anzurez 10, C. Parsons 15, Gonzalez 10

Wasco 57, Shafter 39

WHS -- Alaniz 12, Acosta 11, Rodriguis 2, Rodriguez 11, Pimental 7, Valdes 2, Garcia 12.

SHS -- Millwee 4, T.Parsons 7, Senoran 4, Jara 11, Reeves 2, C.Parsons 11.

No way around it, this was a very disappointing conclusion to the tournament for the Generals. It doesn't change the feeling, but it is worth noting Wasco has had a very good preseason. They've blown out the teams they should, they've beaten some decent teams, and they've nearly knocked off a couple of good teams. That said, let's hope the results are different in league.

Shafter 64, Woodlake 42

2010-12-11T19:22:00.000-08:00

Sounds like it was never close. Shafter was up 40 to 13 at half. Good job, Generals!

More Blog Abuse

2010-12-10T21:42:00.000-08:00

David Franz Culture totally ripped off my idea.

Shafter 49, Madera South 63

2010-12-10T20:11:00.000-08:00

I had a great time watching the Generals play this afternoon in Kingsburg.

The back and forth of the game went like this: Madera South dominated the first quarter and jumped out to a big early lead. The Maderians were aggressive with good speed and length on defense and could attack the rim and shoot pretty well too. Until some time in the second quarter, it looked like Madera South would win in a rout. But Shafter played very well for most of the second and third quarters and tied the game early in the fourth. Madera South's press then earned it a few quick baskets and stretched the lead with free throws as Shafter went cold. So the game was closer than the final score suggests.

The outcome was disappointing, but my (admittedly boosterish) memory is full of good things. And really, I could single out all of the guys, because I saw good plays from all of them. But here is a list of good stuff I remember.

-Derek Reeves had the best game of his young varsity career. As usual, he was all over the boards, but he also dumped in 11 points by my count. He had some nice catches and finishes in there and a free throw. Two points came from an (ill-advised) mid-range jumper, which defied the laws of physics and went in, so you know he was feeling it. He was also close to drawing a charge on at least one occasion - doing it the manly way, hands up.

-Both Cyrus and T.J. Parsons made some good plays around the basket. Both are athletes and fun to watch. T.J. had perhaps the play of the night as he stole the ball and laid it in with one motion.

- Angelo Senoran, whose ability to beat the first man has never been in question, was taking it strong to the rack and drawing fouls like I have never seen him do. No eight foot floaters tonight, which was good.

- Speaking of good, Kyle Milwee continues to act like he isn't an undersized freshman from a tiny junior high and just attacks the defense like it should be scared of him. Maybe it should.

I'm leaving people out and obviously it wasn't all positive, but the overall impression I have is of a team that doesn't yet realize how good it is and can be.

Kingsburg Tournament So Far

2010-12-10T04:11:00.000-08:00

Shafter 72, Reedley 75 in OT. Heartbreaker. Shafter led most of the game and was up by 4 with 14 seconds to play. A kid from Reedley was 7 for 10 from three, leading the comeback effort.

Shafter lost by 1 last night. I don't have any details on this one.

12/7 Frazier Moutain Preview - Updated

2010-12-07T05:57:00.000-08:00

If the weather cooperates, the Generals will head up to Frazier Mountain to take on the Falcons. The two teams have played three times, all in the past few years and all ending in lopsided Shafter wins. Frazier Mountain is 2 and 1 on the year. The Falcons are led by Senior Nick Pilgram (no relation to the Kurt Vonnegut character). So it goes.

Update:
Shafter wins 61-53. Frazier Mountain seems to have improved since we saw them last.

Blog Abuse

2010-12-06T17:50:00.000-08:00

The short run fate of the Shafter basketball program is dependent upon the up and down cycles of athletic talent. In the medium term, player development in the lower grades will be key. In the long run, Shafter basketball and Shafter athletics will only soar as high as reading ability. I'm sort of joking. There are probably better reasons to care about literacy, but if basketball is enough for you, it is enough for me. If you want to help kids in Shafter, including future basketball stars, read better, let me know (dfranzATshafter.com) . I'd love to connect you with reading opportunities.

Shafter 60, McFarland 50

2010-11-30T22:54:00.000-08:00

Classic McFarland- Shafter. Shafter won by forcing more turnovers, grabbing more rebounds and, as a result, taking more shots. McFarland stayed close by making a high percentage of the shots they took.

11/30 McFarland Preview

2010-11-30T05:48:00.000-08:00

The all time series is 50-16 in Shafter's favor. The Maxpreps site for McFarland doesn't have stats or rosters, so I do not have much to go on there.

Two years ago, Shafter had a nice, ugly win over McFarland at home, depending entirely on defense to overcome terrible shooting. I wrote at the time-

The Generals made up the differences of quality in quantity. They shot 83 times from the field to McFarland's 43 and 28 times from the line to McFarland's 21. It really was a bunch of monkeys with typewriters on the offensive end, but given enough chances, they did produce something, if not Shakespeare.

The first quarter of that game was incredible. Shafter held McFarland scoreless until about the last minute of the first quarter. More impressive was the way they did it. McFarland never ran offense. They hardly had a chance to look at the basket, much less score. The Cougars made some adjustments, the Generals probably wore down a bit, and at the end of the day, you do have to put the ball in the basket occasionally to win. On that night the Generals did that just enough to pull out a two point victory.

Season Preview

2010-11-29T21:23:00.000-08:00

Sorry about the Alumni Game highlights. They will come eventually. I have a feeling I am going to be behind a lot more this season. While it is in many ways preferable to actually see the team you are writing about, it sometimes seems more efficient not to.

As the first game is Tuesday in McFarland, here is a quick guide to the team by position:

Guards:
Alex Martinez, Sr. - Martinez looks like he will be the starting point guard. Watching the practice scrimmages, I have been very impressed with Alex. He is a solid, aggressive player on both sides of the ball. He can create off the dribble and shoot from three, but he is not likely to shoot 20 times a game. That is a good thing, because there are quite a few offensive weapons to spread the ball to.

Angelo Senoran, Jr. - Angelo played varsity as a sophomore last year, mostly at the shooting guard position. He is probably the quickest player on the team. While he seemed to be the heir apparent to the point guard position before the emergence of Martinez, the off-guard spot really suits his game, especially in the man offense.

Enrique Serna, Sr. - Enrique is hard working, athletic, and polite (He walked around the cafeteria after the Alumni Game thanking us all individually for playing. Nice gesture.). His offense is fine, but Enrique has the ability to be a truly outstanding defender. If you remember how I compared defensive specialist Miguel Santana to mythical creatures, you know how that makes me feel.

TJ Parsons, Jr. - Speaking of outstanding defenders. TJ is another candidate for best ball defender on the team. He can really warm up the ball.

Mason Gonzalez, Jr. - Mason is the younger brother of Alex. Like Alex, he can shoot the ball and has a solid, well-rounded game.

Kyle Milwee, Fr. - Every precious inch of Kyle Milwee is basketball player. He is undersized and underexperienced, but Kyle Milwee just seems to know what he is doing out there with the ball in his hands. He is good. He is going to be very good. That said, I don't know that he will ever be able to guard me in the post and I look forward to three more Alumni Games of utilizing my 12 inches of height advantage on the block. Consider that a challenge, young man.

Swing Men:

Greg Anzurez, Sr. - As a sophomore, Greg played varsity and was a good contributor around the basket. Last year, he was asked to extend his game a bit and played well. He didn't dump in tons of points, but was very efficient, averaging 1.34 points per possession. He blocked almost two shots a game in league. He rebounds well. He is a deadly three point shooter. In short Greg Anzurez has the ability to be a dominant player this year.

Jesse Samaniego, Jr. - Lanky and quick with a nose for the ball and with a knack for finishing, Jesse has lots of potential. I am eager to see him against real competition.

Cyrus Parsons, So. - Cyrus has an Anzurez like skill set. He has good size and athleticism and nice hands. This will be his second year on varsity.

Mark Jara, Sr. - Jara is a big athletic guy. He brings a little football to the floor. He has a chance to contribute, especially with defensive and rebounding effort.

Bigs:

Tyler Gonzalez, Jr. - Tyler is 6'8." He has good hands and touch around the basket. It's a simple formula, really.

Derek Reeves, Jr. - Derek has a gift. It is called rebounding. He isn't very tall for his position. He doesn't seem to jump very high. He doesn't appear to be unusually strong or quick. He is just really good at catching missed shots, probably the best on the team. I am pretty sure that alone will get him time on the floor. The rest of his game has improved since I saw him play this summer, but as Dennis Rodman proved lo those many years ago, rebounding and defense are enough, if you do them really well.

So there you have it. As you can tell, I am enthused about this squad.

I'm Thankful I Could Get Out of Bed This Morning

2010-11-25T07:30:00.000-08:00

The Alumni Game was last night. There was a good turnout and I think all had a good time. Alumni trailed the whole game, but brought the margin into single digits in the last couple of minutes, finally losing by 8.

Personally, I was thrilled to be a part of the festivities this year. I look forward to posting some video clips from the game so we geezers can relive the glory.

Good Work, Shafter Cross Country

2010-11-16T12:55:00.000-08:00

This email from Shafter Cross Country coach Darin Sundgren has been making the rounds. Great job!

The kids all did a great job on Friday and competed to the absolute best of their ability. As you already know, the girls placed 1st by topping Ridgeview by 40pts! (We also did not have one of our top girls Carli Preston) We had only beaten them by 10-15pts earlier this season, and they beat us at the Kern Co. Championships two weeks ago.

Nicolette Aldape was the individual champion, Cambria Tudor a close 3rd, Ana Loeza 10th. Our top 6 girls placed in the top 20 out of 121 runners!

The boys had a hard faught race with McFarland...only losing to them by 4pts! It was truely a two team battle for 1st as McFarland scored 39pts, Shafter 43 and Wasco 3rd with 132pts! Jesus Villalpando was the individual champion besting McFarland's top runner by 20 seconds! Luis Mireles 8th, Simon Viss 9th, Alex Moreno 11th, Miguel Plascencia 18th, Jose Espinoza 19th and Omar Aguilar 25th out of 165 runners! Jesus' time of 16:05 is the best time by a Shafter boy at Woodward Park, and it was the 8th best time of the day out of all 520 runners from all the divisions combined! The boys team also ranked 3rd overall in the combined all divisions results out of the 74 teams that competed...amazing!!! 1st Buchanan, 2nd Stockdale, 3rd Shafter, 4th McFarland, 5th Clovis.

Even though the boys placed second in the valley, and qualified to state, they were very disappointed not to beat McFarland for the championship. These boys could use a handshake or high-five if you see them. Long time Shafter coach Terry Lewis says they are the best team Shafter High has had since 1976, and the best girls team ever. Side note - Buchanan and Shafter are the only schools to qualify two teams to state and have two individual champions this year.

Thank you all for your support this season!

The following are links to the results from Friday;

Girls individual - http://www.proracegroup.com/cif10/g3i.html
Girls team - http://www.proracegroup.com/cif10/g3t.html
Girls All Teams - http://www.proracegroup.com/cif10/gt.html

Boys individual - http://www.proracegroup.com/cif10/b3i.html
Boys team - http://www.proracegroup.com/cif10/b3t.html
Boys All Teams - http://www.proracegroup.com/cif10/bt.html

Alumni Game

2010-11-09T18:02:00.000-08:00

From Coach Wiebe -

Generals,

The time is almost here for the 2^nd Annual Shafter Alumni Basketball Game. The game will be at 6:00 on the night of Wednesday, November 24, 2010. Like last year, our team of alums will play against the 2010-2011 varsity squad. In order to qualify for the alumni team, players must be 10+ years removed from their high school glory days. Please email (john_wiebeATkhsd.k12.ca.us)confirmation that you will participate or any questions you have. This year’s alumni team shirts will be $7, cash or check (payable to Shafter High School). You can bring the money to the game that night or mail it to me at the school ahead of time. Details on a reception to follow the game will be coming soon. Thanks for your interest and I hope to see you there.

John Wiebe

Celebrating Shafter Success

2010-11-09T17:32:00.000-08:00

The Richland Band won their division at the Garces Band Review and the Shafter High Band won their's at West. I have seen both groups perform recently and they are doing the community proud big time.

The Shafter High Cross Country teams are finishing up a fantastic season. I want to shake Jesus "Lefty" Villalpando's hand (right or left) for diving for the tape. Very strong effort. Also, team SSL championships all around.

Follow the exploits of the CC team and the SHS band on Facebook.

Basketballs Bouncing

2010-11-05T02:39:00.000-07:00

It is a time for hope. Balls are out now and the lots of kids want to play.

But what we all want to know, of course, is how good the team will be. What basis is there for hope? I dug into the question here last fall. This kind of modeling with so few data points is ill-advised, but given that, it wasn't too far off. Tehachapi outperformed and BCHS underperformed. This was partly due to the fact that schools are not replacing graduates from the same pool of players. Tehachapi reloads, which is one reason they don't belong in the SSL.

I know what you are thinking, "Wouldn't it be cool to combine the Free Lunch and the Returning Players models for comprehensive projection system?" Yes. It would be cool.

Big Numbers Out For Conditioning

2010-10-20T07:17:00.000-07:00

I am hearing that there are 30+ kids showing up at 6am to run, jump, and push-up their way to athletic perfection. This is about double the number of recent years.

Pre-Conditioning and a Shooting Experiment

2010-10-15T02:42:00.000-07:00

The first team activities of the season start on Monday. No basketballs for a few more weeks yet, but it is coming quickly now.

Another little something is a bit of a scientific experiment I began this week. I have been curious about a couple of things about three point shooting.

The first bit of curiosity was related to measuring three point shooting in a practice setting. I am a huge sucker for measurement and especially measuring the same things over time. I just think it is enormously valuable for lots of reasons.

In measurement there are a couple of issues of interest (With apologies for the subnumbering). The first is reliability. Presumably, my shooting ability is not changing very much from day to day, so the sample of shots needs to be big enough so that the results aren't too volatile. So far, I've been shooting 50 shots and that seems to work pretty well. The percentage of makes in any 10 shots ranges widely, but over 50 my truly erratic shot finds a stable measure. The second issue is reliability - whether shooting fifty three pointers by myself is a good measure of how well I would shoot in a game situation. Since I don't play basketball games, that is a question that will have to be hunched and felt, with scientific rigor, of course.

The second bit of curiosity is about how much practice it takes to get how much better at shooting three pointers. I know I won't be able to generalize much from my own experience here, but even when I was shooting regularly, I never did a good job of keeping track of numbers of makes and misses. I am sure there was some progress in there, but I had to rely entirely on memory to know how much worse I used to be. Now I have a pretty clear idea of exactly how bad I am.

Here are the results so far. Shield your eyes if you must. It is pretty ugly.
Day 1: 15 of 50
Day 2: 13 of 50
Day 3: 13 of 50
Day 4: 17 of 50 (includes an unintended bank)

Shafter 9, Kern Valley 6

2010-10-01T23:49:00.000-07:00

From Randy Penner, special to The Bivouac:

The final score was in our favor tonight, 9-6. The game started with Kern Valley in control, gaining first downs with their double wing, ball control, running offense. First downs were gained in about two plays, and soon thereafter a touchdown was scored. A botched snap prevented the seventh point but from the looks of things, that would not matter much. At the end of the first quarter a Shafter touchdown was called back due to a penalty, but a bit of hope was born. In the second period, with the Broncs backed up to the goal line, they inexplicably went into a spread formation. The ensuing snap went over the head of the qb and was fallen on for a safety. The tide of the game changed . Later in the quarter, Ricardo Castro moved to his right to pass, saw an opening and ran instead. Just after getting to the line of scrimmage he made a cutback to the left and ran to the corner of the end zone for the score. The PAT ended the scoring. The General defense stiffened considerably in the second half, with the Broncs never again mounting the drives that peppered the first half. SHS ends the pre-league schedule at 3 wins and 2 losses.

Howard Hobson

2010-09-29T19:17:00.000-07:00

Here is a Joe Morgan trivia question for you: Who is the coach I think did the most to make the game of basketball what it is today?

John Wooden? Red Auerbach? Dean Smith? No. No. No.

Howard Hobson is the right answer.

Howard Hobson won the first NCAA Championship with Oregon in 1939. The rest of his career as a coach was not particularly notable. He left for Yale in 1947 and coached there until he retired in 1956 with an overall career winning percentage of about .580. Not bad, but not close to Wooden (.813), Auerbach (.662), or Smith (.776) either. Hobson did not change the game by winning it as it was played, but by imagining a new and better way to play the game.

He saw very early that basketball was drifting toward a slow grind which rewarded height above all else. In his dissertation on basketball at Columbia (why didn't anyone tell me you could write a dissertation on basketball?) he suggested the way out of this impasse. The three point line, shot clock, and wider lane, all grew out of that work. The book version was later published under the title Scientific Basketball, complete with pictures from a 1944 experimental game between Columbia and Fordham with a court that looks exactly like a modern high school court, but nothing like the other courts of the day.

The interesting thing to me about Hobson, and in this he was like many inventors, is that his vision for how the game could be played gave him little competitive advantage in the way the game was played at the time. In fact, one can imagine that is precisely because his innovations were so radical as to require a rule change that they were not of much use to him as a coach. Food for thought.

Shafter Cross Country Continues to Roll

2010-09-26T14:28:00.000-07:00

Read all about it.

The Actual Barbershop

2010-09-25T12:19:00.000-07:00

I got a great haircut at Deluxe Barbershop this morning. It looks just the same as it did the last time I was there more than a decade ago. Rod Rodriguez hasn't aged a day. It is every bit the center of SHS sports memory that I expected. Lots of team photos and collective wisdom. All of which reminds me that I need to do some housekeeping and updating on the Virtual Barbershop.

Shafter 21, McLane 18

2010-09-17T22:14:00.000-07:00

It was not always comfortable, but the Generals got the job done tonight. They jumped out to a 14-0 lead in a first half of grinding, hand-off and fake hand-off football going both ways. Shafter's artillery, azure-shod punter Arturo Valle proved to be a big asset in this back and forth battle of field position.

In the second half, the Highlanders moved away from their run attack and decided to hang their hopes on the arm of senior quarterback Johnny Phaxay. Good move. Phaxay stood in the pocket looking like Mel Gibson in a kilt, smashing the faces of rushing Generals with one arm while slinging the ball downfield with the other. McLane scored three touchdowns this way, though, crucially, they failed to convert on any extra point attempts.

The Generals got the ball with 2:18 to play and down 18 to 14. By this time, Shafter was without starting quarterback Ricardo Castro, who left the game with an injury earlier in the half. (I think I saw him icing his hand, but I'm not sure.) Sophomore wide receiver Derric Barton took over under center. He faked a hand-off and ran around the left side for a first down on the first play of the drive. Then on the second play he did the same thing, but was gone down the sideline for a 50ish yard touchdown run. Valle blasted the point after through and you have your final score.

But there was a bit of excitement to report in the final McLane drive. Phaxay was shouting "FREEDOM" as he pranced back and forth in front of his huddle. Fortunately for Shafter, his receivers dropped some of his throws. Then, the whole drama seemed to come to a close when Arturo Valle didn't drop one of Phaxay's long tosses with less than 40 seconds to play. He didn't drop it, that is until he fumbled the ball on the return. McLane recovered the ball for a nice gain. A couple of plays later, Barton dashed Highlander hopes with an interception that he wisely fell on.

Notes:

- Derric Barton had two interceptions and may have intentionally dropped another because it was fourth down.

- Barton is very fast.

- Rare to see a game where kicking was so clearly the difference. Valle was good and McLane was very bad. They missed two PATs and missed out on three points at the end of the half for lack of a kicking game. The one McLane punt I remember traveled a full 17 yards from scrimmage.

-The band was great. They had the Richland band with them, which was good to see. Also, I don't remember the drums being on the track before or playing so much. I loved it.

-Learning that McLane's mascot is the Highlanders, I thought it fit because the school name is clearly Scottish, but then I wondered if it wasn't a mistake. That second thought was inspired by a passage in A River Runs Through It where the father reports with disappointment that one of his sons has started capitalizing the "L" in Maclean. The reason this was disappointing was because people, seeing the capital "L," would assume that he was a "lowlander." So maybe McLane, with it's capital "L" really ought to be the Lowlanders.

Shafter Sports Roundup

2010-09-12T09:05:00.000-07:00

This is not going to be a systematic review, just trying to get myself back in the habit. The football team seems to have made longer strides in their second season under Coach Ansolabehere than most expected. They handled RFK easily and played right with a well regarded Porterville squad. While the Generals lost 36-14, they found themselves on the wrong side of some critical breaks, much like the Virginia Cavaliers last night. And like Virginia's ACC, the SSL struggled. Wasco was shut out. Tehachapi suffered a rare home loss. Taft and Arvin lost too. This could be a very interesting season.

I have not seen them in competition (I do see them often gliding around Mannel Park), but the Cross Country teams are like a shark riding on an elephant right now, just trampling and devouring everything in sight (hat tip to Jack Handey). I am sure there will be much more to say about these wing-footed Generals in the coming weeks.

Update

2010-09-07T20:48:00.000-07:00

I stopped posting regularly at the end of last basketball season and if you are still checking the site, the very least I can offer is an explanation.

To begin with, it is time to retire my character of General Shafter. I adopted the voice of the General for fun and as a cover for the fact that I was living in Virginia and so my information about the team was actually somewhat limited. My real name, as I'd guess most people who would care to know know by now, is David Franz.

Starting this blog was an odd thing for me to do and like most odd things has a lot of insufficient explanations. My kids - all farmworthy early risers - got me up on dark mornings, giving me time to write after making the oatmeal. I was curious about blogging and this was a chance to explore what it was about. Crucially, I am friends with Coach Wiebe giving me access and special interest in the team.

But, I suppose the main reason why I started writing about Shafter basketball was as a way of coping with chronic homesickness. Mine has been a sociologist's homesickness and the key symptoms were a rabid curiosity and concern about the community.

Out of the blue, an opportunity arose for me to be curious and concerned about the community of Shafter on a full time basis. About three weeks ago, I started a job as the Schools Project Director for the City of Shafter. The position is new and in progress, but the gist is that I am supposed to understand the trajectory of Shafter students in their successes and failures and then tap resources in the community to help make more successes. It is really is a dream job for me and I am having a blast.

Unfortunately, it has given outlet to some of what fueled this effort. I am still figuring out what to do about that. I'll let you know if there are any new developments.

General Sighting

2010-08-21T07:13:00.000-07:00

Jimenez Comes Up Big

2010-02-27T13:20:00.000-08:00

Nice work!

Shafter Boys Soccer Valley Champs

2010-02-26T03:03:00.000-08:00

Everyone wishes it had ended differently, though. It sounds like Wasco really showed some class and honor on this. Just sad all the way around.

Girls Basketball and Boys Soccer

2010-02-24T03:24:00.000-08:00

For the next month, maybe more, posting is going to be pretty light. However, I have been remiss in not pointing out the great success of the girls basketball team and the boys soccer team. The girls were 8 and 2 in league, good for a share of the SSL title with Tehachapi. And if you thought the boys have a nice crop of youngsters, the girls team has one senior. Hannah Ramirez, the team's leading scorer, is a freshman. They play Selma tonight at home.

The boys soccer team is 17 and 5 overall and faces Wasco for the Division IV Valley Championship on Friday. (How cool is that?) The last time the teams met the game ended in a 1-1 tie.

Shafter 53, Wasco 43

2010-02-20T03:03:00.000-08:00

Beating Wasco is always pleasant. This one lasts all off-season.

It looks like senior Cristian Barrios went out with a bang. 27 points is a season high, career high, and the most points scored by anyone in a Shafter uniform in the last three seasons. Reminiscent of Alex Gonzalez's 24 point game in the last meeting with Wasco last year.

SHAFTER Barrios 27, C. Parsons 4, Hernandez 6, Auzurez 14, T. Parsons 2.

WASCO Alanis 7, Acosta 2, Salinas 6, Hinojosa 18, Rodriguez 10.

JV, FS Shafter d. Wasco

Don't Miss

2010-02-19T13:16:00.000-08:00

this very nice story from Carole Lynn Anderson about her trip to see her former student Phillip Jimenez play alongside fellow General Ralphie Santos in a game at Cuesta College. I've been meaning to do an update on these two. The Cougars are 24 and 5, riding a six game winning streak into tomorrow's game, the last before the playoffs.

Ralphie redshirted last year and is playing well in limited action. Most of the playing time as been taken by second year players, so Ralphie is poised to step into a much larger role next year. Phillip is a big part of the Cuesta attack in this his second season, averaging more than 10 points per game.

It is great to hear about these guys doing so well on and off the court. I think I can speak for all of Generaldom in saying that we are proud of you.

Wasco Tonight

2010-02-19T11:53:00.000-08:00

Shafter plays Wasco tonight.

Both have had better seasons, but no matter, expect the Den of Darkness to be a hopping hot box.

Go Generals!

Shafter 48, Arvin 54

2010-02-17T03:45:00.000-08:00

Another tough loss.

Arvin 54, Shafter 48

SHAFTER (6-18, 2-7 SSL) -- Senoran 1, Barrios 16, Trujillo 2, Lazaro 2, C.Parsons 6, Hernandez 4, Anzurez 10, T.Parsons 2, Puildo 5.

ARVIN (6-20, 1-8) -- Solorio 5, E.Cordova 7, Williams 9, A.Cordova 2, Miranda 8, Martinez 8, Barrera 10, Chavez 5 JV, FS--Shafter d. Arvin

Tehachapi Tonight

2010-02-11T12:00:00.001-08:00

The Generals face the Warriors tonight in the Old Gym. I don't have much to add about Tehachapi. Weather trouble has crammed Tehachapi's schedule next week - four games in four days. Also the JV and Varsity teams for Tehachapi are undefeated in league, boys and girls.

Shafter 52, Taft 60

2010-02-10T02:07:00.000-08:00

SHAFTER (6-16, 2-5 SSL) Senoran 6, Barrios 17, Trujillo 14, C. Parsons 2, Hernandez 4, Anzurez 3, T. Parsons 5, Pulido 1.

TAFT (18-7, 5-2) Liljeroos 4, McPherson 6, LeClair 6, Lopez 6, Howell 11, Jorgensen 8, Watts 2, Emberson 14, Johnson 3. JV, FS Taft d. Shafter

Taft Preview

2010-02-09T08:24:00.000-08:00

The Generals go on the road tonight to face Taft. Taft is still in the hunt for the league title, though close losses to Tehachapi and BCHS mean that they need some help. Shafter is a longer shot, but is hungry for some quality league wins to show that the Wasco loss and not the BCHS win was a fluke.

Taft's team resembles Shafter's in some ways. Both are led by quick point guards who like to get into the lane in Cristian Barrios and Eric LeClair. Both also feature three point specialists as their secondary scoring threat in Adrian Trujillo and Clint Jorgensen. Shafter and Taft both run versions of former Clovis West, Fresno City, and Pepperdine coach Vance Walberg's offense against man defense. Taft is older. They get about two thirds of their scoring from seniors and 6 of their top 10 scorers are seniors. Shafter also gets the bulk of its scoring from seniors, but two of them are responsible for a very large share of it and there are more underclassmen in the mix.

Shafter 56, BCHS 68

2010-02-06T03:38:00.000-08:00

BCHS Preview

2010-02-05T08:36:00.000-08:00

BCHS comes to Shafter tonight in hopes of avenging their loss to the Generals in the first round of league play. Since that game BCHS lit up Wasco and Arvin like it was 2008, beat a good Taft team and narrowly lost to Tehachapi. I am sure they will show up with a chip on their shoulders. In general, the team seems to have some anger issues with 5 technicals on the year.

Shafter 63, Tehachapi 71

2010-02-04T03:55:00.000-08:00

Shafter was again done in by a disastrous quarter. This time it was frame number two, which Tehachapi won 26-2, putting Tehachapi ahead 33-15 at the half. The Generals came storming back in the second half, cutting the Warrior lead to 6 with just over a minute to play, but couldn't get closer.

Tehachapi Preview

2010-02-03T03:43:00.000-08:00

The Generals make the trip up the mountain tonight to face the Tehachapi Warriors in a make up game for the snow canceled contest earlier in the season. Tehachapi remained unbeaten in league with a 67-63 win over BCHS last night. As they typically do, Tehachapi has quite a few long, athletic players. Jordan Beardsley and Bivouac name fave Dougan Patience return from last year's squad. The emergence of the dunking 6-1 sophomore point guard Corey Lange has only added to the Warriors strength. Lange scored 19 against BCHS and 22 against Taft.

The Generals have proven that they can beat teams like Tehachapi. Sierra was a similarly big and athletic team and has a similar record. They have also lost to teams much less talented. That's why they play the game.

Here is Shafter vs. Tehachapi all time.

Victor Valley Highlights

2010-02-02T03:22:00.000-08:00

Slowly moving through the highlights, here is Victor Valley.

Despite the score, there were some nice plays mixed in there and those clips at the end of Barrios driving and dishing to Evan Hernandez only look like the same clip repeated over and over.'

Note: I formatted this for a wide screen, so you'll need to double click on the video to watch the whole thing at youtube. Sorry.

Shafter 57, BAA 59

2010-02-02T01:12:00.001-08:00

It was close throughout and came right down to the wire. Shafter was down by 1 with the ball and 22 seconds left. A General missed a shot inside and had to foul the rebounder. 14 seconds left. BAA made both, giving them a three point lead. Shafter made a quick layup and timeout with 9.5 seconds on the clock. Quick foul. 8.6 on the clock. BAA made one, missed one. Two point game. The Generals brought it up and got a corner shot from Greg Anzurez, which bounced off the rim as time expired.

Bakersfield Adventist Preview

2010-02-01T07:52:00.000-08:00

This is going to be a busy week. No time for sulking. Three games against three good opponents. Things start tonight with a long awaited home game with Bakersfield Adventist. The Eagles are 9-2 on the year. Their most impressive local win was against Highland. They beat Wasco by two. They lost to South and Tehachapi. Point guard Tyler Wooldridge is the Eagles' best player. In all Bakersfield Adventist is that unusual private school that is not very good or very bad at basketball. Barring another freakishly bad quarter, this should be a good match-up.

Divisional Realignment Ctd.

2010-01-30T03:23:00.000-08:00

The change in the divisional realignment process is not nearly as sensible as might have been hoped. The point system has its problems, but those aren't worth quibbling about. It is close enough.

The real problem is the crowding of teams in divisions 3 and 4, which does not seem to be changing at all. I haven't seen the full list, but locally, only Liberty is moving (up). There is a reason for the bottom heavy structure. The state CIF rules say that schools with more than 1,250 students cannot compete below division 3 and schools with more than 500 students cannot compete below Division 4 in state playoffs. It looked for a while like the section would just do its playoffs differently, but no.

Shafter 36, Wasco 54

2010-01-30T02:55:00.000-08:00

Nightmare of a first quarter for the Generals - 17-0. In the quarter, Shafter was 0-7 from the field (including three layups and an 8 footer), 0-4 from the line, and had 6 turnovers. As I said, a nightmare. From there, the Generals played even with Wasco, losing by 18.

Wasco Preview

2010-01-29T07:04:00.000-08:00

I'm going to have to be quick about this because I have a busy day ahead of laying here and remembering past glories.

Shafter and Wasco are well matched teams. As they always are, the Generals and the Tigers will be hyped up for this game. Wasco will be looking to recover from the drubbing they suffered at BCHS on Tuesday. Shafter will probably need to play better than it did earlier this week against Arvin to come out victorious. I expect it to be close.

Wasco's head coach, Gerald Waldrip, is a cagey strategist, known for matching his defensive schemes to the opponent. I saw these two teams play this summer and if Waldrip remembers that game as I do, he knows that he doesn't have anyone who can stay with Cristian Barrios in space. Spacing and isolation are key for Shafter offense, the problem being getting defenders alone - which reminds me of this little piece of awesomeness -

As you probably could have guessed, I've been trying to find an excuse to post that for a while, but you really owe it to yourself to watch. The exploding piano, the spasmic leg kicks, the backlit frizz, the flowing cloaks, and the need to look up grimacing during a guitar solo, all set to an anthem of offensive spacing. That is why it is awesome. It will also take you right back to the Radon Fortenberry era, a very good time for Shafter basketball.

Back on topic - expect some kind of junk defense from Wasco in an effort to slow Barrios down. If that happens, the eyes of Shafter will turn to Adrian Trujillo for some artillery backup. Others too, but the first and simplest response to this sort of thing will be a few threes. This role as "first responder" is perhaps a way that we could talk about Trujillo as "the bombero," a beautiful of Spanish word that does not in fact mean "bomber" as I first thought.

Speaking of threes, remember when I noted that Christian Rodriguez was out and then back at Wasco. He was their best three point shooter last year and one of the best in the league connecting on nearly 40% of his attempts last year. Man is Rodriguez due this year. He is 6 for 43 on the year and had missed his last 22 attempts going into the BCHS game, a streak that stretched back to 2009. The stats aren't up yet, but Rodriguez did score three points, perhaps his drought is over.

Here is the all-time series record.

The game is in Shafter tonight. Near the peaceful western shore, but not so near as to be surrounded by insufferable weather snobs.

Division Realignment Passes

2010-01-28T03:02:00.000-08:00

In principle, this seems like a good idea to me. You can also read more about it on Zach Ewing's blog.

Starting in the fall, individual teams (rather than schools) will be assigned a playoff division based on their performance in the past two years. "Performance" will be measured by league finish, playoff seed, and playoff finish. There will be a minimum of 13 teams in each division and you can only move one division each realignment.

The existing system is so arbitrary that almost any change is bound to be an improvement. How much of an improvement will depend. The main problems with the existing system are the distribution of teams and the assignment of teams within that distribution (aside from that, it's great!). In basketball, the distribution currently looks like this:

D1 - 11 teams
D2- 15 teams
D3- 27 teams
D4- 31 teams
D5- 10 teams

In three of the divisions, everyone with a pulse makes the playoffs. In the other two, about half of the teams stay home. The 13 team minimum helps even things a bit, but if you just moved two slots from D2 to D1 and three slots from D4 to D5, this distribution would be compliant. This kind of lumpiness only makes sense if there are some clear and wide breaks in competitive levels that you could accurately predict. You might want to keep such "natural" divisional breaks in place. I doubt that these exist, with the possible exception of the very top schools in some sports. Even if they did exist, I have serious doubts about the ability of the Central Section to locate them. This looks like it could be a baby step toward ending the lumpiness.

The second problem with the current alignment is with the assignment of teams to particular divisions. Currently this seems to be based partly on enrollment, but with a strong does of ad hoc caves to special pleading.

Ridgeview and Golden Valley have some of the highest enrollments in Bakersfield, higher than Division 1 Centennial, for example. But they drop all the way to Division 3, where they clean up. Why should they get to do that rather than North or West, both schools with lower enrollment? No idea.

My advice to Crichlow:

1. Try for an equal number of teams in each division. If one division is going to be small it should be the top one and only the top one. There is no good reason for some divisions to have three times as many schools as another.

2. Make the point system public. I expect it to lead to some goofy outcomes, but at least we'd know why.

3. Don't allow appeals. Every case is special. Every school has a reason why it should go up or down. The only fair way is to set the rules, make them as clear and fair as you can, then live with them.

Dogpile of Cliches Results in Imagery Logjam

2010-01-27T13:37:00.000-08:00

CIF Central Section Commissioner Jim Crichlow on proposed realignment of divisions - "I just think it's time to move forward. I think [the proposal] will fly, I really do. If not, we'll go back to square one and start over."

The actual proposal sensibly moves in the direction suggested by Don at the end of the comment thread here.

Shafter 53, Arvin 46

2010-01-27T06:24:00.000-08:00

The Generals are now 2-1 in league and 6-11 overall. Cristian Barrios scored 21, in a not pretty win. Remember though, the goodness of losses and the badness of wins fade over time until all that remains are pure quantities of Ws and Ls... and a river runs through them.

BCHS destroyed Wasco 71-39. Unlike some other Eagle routs I can think of, the margin came against the starters. 31-8 after first quarter - on 'em like a spider monkey! At that point, it was all over but the carcass-picking.

Tehachapi snuck out of Taft with a two point win in their loincloth. Sophomore Corey Lange announced his arrival as a big-time player, leading Tehachapi with a career high 22 points.

Alex Lee and Centennial beat a severely hobbled Ridgeview squad... and Lee didn't freak out afterwards! Congratulations to Coach Lee on both achievements.

Arvin Preview

2010-01-26T06:30:00.000-08:00

It's been a long mid-season break for the Generals, who have not played in a week. Arvin comes to Shafter tonight. The Bears are 5 and 15 on the year. They can be tough, but this is a game Shafter should win. The historical series still favors Arvin 43-58, a lead built during Arvin's dominance in the 1960s and 1970s. Since 1991-92, Shafter has won 21 and lost 13.

SSL Basketball and Trouble on Paradise Drive

2010-01-23T04:10:00.000-08:00

There seems to be more parity in the league this year than the last few. Tehachapi and Taft remain unbeaten, but perilously so. Wasco was pretty close to both of them and Shafter was within a couple of possessions with Taft until the they had to start fouling. Tehachapi has only played one league game due to weather. Arvin isn't going to contend for the league title, but wins against South and Wasco show that they can be a dangerous team.

Which brings us to Bakersfield Christian. Shafter handed them their first SSL loss in more than two years on their home court. Not a pretty scene. The BCHS Athletic Director was so upset that he fired the football coach and rehired the old coach (himself). Actually he had other reasons, including the football team's losing record. It does make you wonder if basketball coach Pete Rivera is feeling some pressure to stop losing to "outlying area" schools. Or maybe it triggered some swagger-nostalgia - "Remember when we used to beat Arvin in the first quarter and then just mess around and try to dunk the rest of the game?" Whatever the wind beneath their wings, those Eagles were flying high against Arvin, beating the bears 79-43.

While we are on the topic of coaching drama ... This is from a commenter on Zach Ewing's blog-

I just got home from the Centennial-Frontier Basketball game. I missed almost all of it because I had to work tonight at the Snack-Bar, blah blah blah, but I was catching the last minute or so, which was a nail biter. Packed stands, everyone on their feet, chants started, the band playing "Don't Stop Believin'", you gotta love it.. But, the real thing we should all take concern to was after the game - a huuuuge dispute between the coaches.
Apparently Frontier Coach Pierce said something to the young Centennial Coach (Alex Lee), something about "You're lucky..." something else. But, it pissed him off, and Pierce walked off. I heard a storm of curse words and the Centennial Coach went bizurk. He was screaming "That is such BS", and more to come that isn't so PG-13. But, he got in our Athletic Director's face about what he said, and some others on the office. I was shocked, but you gotta love a coach who has so much emotion about his own team, but something really must have ticked him off. I didn't want to ease-drop. Once he raged, he ran off the court, grabbing his stuff immediately, and ran into the weight-room being followed by his star Cody Kessler. His wife was yelling quite loud for him to calm down.

Zach talked to Pierce later and said that the story was "overblown" by the commenter.

Pierce says he did say something to Lee, an old friend, in the handshake line after the game in regards to Cody Kessler, who scored 30 more points in the 80-73 victory. According to Pierce, he said, "Hey, I wish I had a 40-point-a-game scorer," which he admits was a poor choice of words. He was trying to say, "Hey, Cody's a great player" not "You only won because of Cody." Pierce, in fact, said he thinks Lee is a better coach than he is. He also said the two talked afterwards, quickly reconciled and are having a barbecue this weekend.

Well, maybe that part was overblown, but the part of the story that I thought was interesting was where Alex Lee is storming around swearing at people after he won the game. His wife trying to calm him down? That is funny stuff.

Alex Lee and Jeremy Pierce both played for Centennial in the late 1990s. I am sure they are good friends, but its not like they took out an ad in the basketball program saying that they were "destined" to play together.

Tehachapi Preview

2010-01-22T03:15:00.000-08:00

Game called off due to weather.

Shafter goes up the mountain tonight as 20 point underdogs according to Calpreps. This will be the fourth game in a row with roughly the same expectation. Shafter has won two of those and lost the third by a smaller margin than the computer expected. The model is adjusting to Shafter's performance, but Tehachapi is the best team of the bunch and Shafter is on the road, so bar slides up a bit.

As usual, Tehachapi has size and athleticism to spare. Dougan Patience, Jordan Beardsley, and Corey Torres lead the scoring. I am also impressed by Corey Lange, a 6-1 sophomore guard who has launched his 165 pound into several "thundering dunks" on the year.

Shafter leads the all-time series 46 to 38, with the outcome of one game unknown. Tehachapi has won the last 5 contests.

Shafter 50, Taft 59

2010-01-20T06:08:00.000-08:00

It was a close game all the way through. Shafter was down two at half and down four in the middle of the fourth quarter, when Taft overcame a great defensive possession by Shafter with a long three out of a scramble to beat the shot clock and go up by seven. The Generals had to start fouling and Taft made enough free throws to spread the margin and run the clock out.

Taft is a good team. This is ten in a row for them. We want to beat good teams, but it sounds like the team continued to play at the higher end of its range. It will need to. Friday, Shafter is scheduled to go up the mountain and play Tehachapi. With the weather being what it is, might not happen, but Tehachapi is every bit as tough as Taft.

Taft Preview

2010-01-19T06:24:00.000-08:00

On the night of January 5th, things looked pretty gloomy for Shafter. The Generals lost by 15 at home to a Delano team that seemed to be the weakest on the schedule for nearly a month. It was the sixth consecutive Shafter loss, putting the Generals record at 3 and 10, with games against heavy favorites Sierra and BCHS to come. There were positive signs to be sure. The young players were gaining valuable experience and the effort level remained high. Still, the chances of threatening the top teams in the SSL seemed dim. Then, Shafter pulled out a victory against Sierra, followed by a road win over BCHS and suddenly the near future looks much brighter and tonight's game at home against Taft (another 20 point favorite) looks much less daunting. A win against Taft would vault Shafter right into serious contention for the league title.

Game Notes:

- Taft (14-5) comes to town riding a 9 game winning streak.

- Shafter leads the all-time series, which dates back to Shafter's inaugural 1930-31 season, 93-82, but has lost the last four meetings.

- This will be a showdown of the two best pure point guards in the league. Both Cristian Barrios of Shafter and Eric LeClair of Taft make things happen off the dribble.

- Taft has typically played a sag-and-switch man defense against Shafter to clog up driving lanes and force Shafter to make threes.

- Taft forward Blake Emberson is one of the biggest floor-slapping flop artists this side of Durham, NC. He took 36 charges last year and already has 28 this year. That ranks fifth in the nation! This despite the fact that Emberson doesn't seem to play very much. He has played in 13 of their 19 games and is the 8th leading scorer on the team. Last year, Shafter held this latter day Fosbury to just one charge in two games.

Shafter Hail!

Shafter 62, BCHS 58

2010-01-15T23:49:00.000-08:00

This is a very nice win on the road. From Maxpreps, here are the scores by quarter:

Q1	Q2	Q3	Q4	Final
Shafter	15	16	14	17	62
Bakersfield Christian	17	11	15	15	58

I will provide more details when I can.

From The Californian:

Shafter 62, Bakersfield Christian 58

SHAFTER (5-10, 1-0 SSL) -- Senoran 11, Barrios 22, Trujillo 6, Lazaro 4, Parsons 4, Hernandez 2, Anzurez 8, McGuire 2, Hiebert 3.

BCHS (4-13, 0-1 SSL) -- Harris 17, Howes 10 (10 assists), Kingley 16 (9 rebs), Fahrney 2, Adeoye 5, Hallstrom 4, DeHoog 2.

Note: BCHS had its 22-game SSL winning streak snapped.

JV--BCHS 56, Shafter 51; FS--BCHS 46, Shafter 41.

Bakersfield Christian Preview

2010-01-15T02:02:00.000-08:00

The Eagles this year, like the Eagles last year rely on three players for the majority of their offense. The indomitable pair of Colby Herron and Marcus Hall has graduated (Hall is now playing for CSUB) and, understandably, their replacements Jordan Kingley and Bryce Howes (both juniors) have not soared as highly. Howes was a three point specialist last year and is growing into an expanded role in the offense. He is still a bomber though, shooting 44% from distance. The returning member of the trio is point guard Tyler Harris. Harris has been hindered a bit by a hand injury, but I wonder if he isn't also seeing his efficiency drop as the team needs him to take more shots. Harris will be fine. He will probably take 15-20 shots and score 15-20 points. That's plenty of damage, though not terrifying.

As I said yesterday, there has been no letup in the ambition of BCHS' scheduling, so don't let the 4-12 record fool you. Victor Valley looked like a junior college team when Shafter played them. BCHS has played a half dozen teams like that.

For Shafter, Cristian Barrios and Adrian Trujillo continue to be the offensive leaders. Both Barrios and Trujillo also stepped up defensively against Sierra. They each took a charge and did a good job of filling passing lanes and applying heat to the ball. I should also mention that Barrios was recently honored by the Jockey Club in Bakersfield along with 11 other area athletes for his play this year. Freshman Cyrus Parsons and sophomore Angelo Senoran have also been coming on in recent weeks. Both players were integral to the fourth quarter comeback against Sierra.

The game is in Bakersfield tonight.

Go Generals!

SSL Begins: Stock Taking

2010-01-13T08:56:00.000-08:00

The Generals' South Sequoia League schedule begins on Friday with game at Bakersfield Christian. I will have a preview of that game tomorrow. For now, I would like to revisit some statistics from before the season. In this post, I used two factors - how good a team was last year and how much of a team's scoring came from seniors - to predict how good they would be this year. It is a highly flawed process, but I figured that while the process lacked rigor, it was easy. So here are the preseason predictions and current calpreps rating (in points from the national average).

	Pred. Rating	Curr. Rating	W-L
Tehachapi	-9	2.2	10-6
Taft	-8.7	-0.9	13-5
BCHS	2.5	-4.7	4-12
Wasco	-11.5	-14.2	4-13
Arvin	-25.3	-16	5-12
Shafter	-17.4	-17.5	4-10

The current ratings are going to change and I wouldn't take the differences between Shafter, Arvin, and Wasco or the differences between Tehachapi and Taft too seriously. BCHS remains a mystery. Most of their games have been against truly outstanding teams who have predictably blown them out, so that 4 and 12 record may not be indicative of how they will fare going forward. I should also note that Wasco played most of their schedule so far without the services of Christian Rodriguez, arguably their best player from last year. He is back now and seems to be playing well. I am surprised that Arvin had as successful a pre-league season as they had. The win over South is a real feather in their cap. However, only Tehachapi has a better win than Shafter's victory over Sierra last week. In fact, Shafter has displayed a wide range, beating Sierra and narrowly missing wins against Sunnyside and Rosamond, and losing to Mira Monte, Delano, and Coalinga. This is perhaps to be expected from a young team. Here is hoping that the team's better angels win out.

Highlights from the Sunnyside Game

2010-01-09T14:33:00.001-08:00

Shafter 50, Sierra 46

2010-01-09T02:55:00.000-08:00

I happily report a big, come from behind victory in Shafter last night. The score was 21-20 Sierra at the half. Sierra added to their lead in the third quarter, and started the final quarter with a 7 point cushion, but Shafter won the final frame 17 to 6 to send the mountain boys home hungry.

Cristian Barrios led the way with 19 points. Adrian Trujillo and Cyrus Parsons had 10. Angelo Senoran scored 5 and Evan Hernandez 4. Horacio Lazaro added two huge points, making two free throws with 14 seconds to go and extend the lead to 4.

Make no mistake, this was a solid win for Shafter. Calpreps.com had the Chieftains as 21 point favorites. Congratulations to the team.

Sierra Preview

2010-01-08T07:58:00.000-08:00

Sierra comes into our green and golden valley with a 9 and 3 record and a 5 game winning streak. This is the back end of a home and home arrangement that sent Shafter to the mountains last year, returning with an 8-point loss hung around their necks. It was the fourth meeting in a series dating back to the 1987-88 season and it was a game of extremes. Sierra sat back in a zone, using their size to try to force shots from outside. Shafter obliged, heaving up 41 three pointers, easily the most since I have been paying attention and perhaps the most in Shafter High history. Only 7 of those shots connected, leaving the Shafter faithful wondering how a few bounces might have changed the outcome. I wonder if this year's seemingly more selective and accurate version of Adrian Trujillo le bombardier might have made more than the 3 of 13 of last year's model. Perhaps we will find out tonight. The other unusual fact about the game was the lopsided distribution of free throws. Shafter shot 10 times from the charity stripe compared to 49 attempts for the home team.

This year the Chieftains have one common opponent with the Generals. Both teams lost close games to Sunnyside. Sierra is led by four year varsity player Brandon Bill, a 5'9" guard who wears number 13. They are not quite as big as last year, so we may see them defend differently.