Cooking Chips: Warriors Claim Cal Pac Glory

By Brandon Petersen 

In 2020, the Westcliff men's basketball team finished its final unaffiliated season 4-24.

Three years later, on the final day of February, the Warriors became California Pacific Conference champions with a convincing 65-54 win over UC Merced at Bell Bank Park at Legacy Fields in Mesa, Arizona. 

Talk about a quick turnaround.

Westcliff head coach, Jerred Cook, who was an assistant coach on that four-win team three seasons ago, has not only witnessed the remarkable ascension of his Warriors first-hand, he has forged it. 

It was Cook who spent most of his time one-on-one with players as an assistant in that final unaffiliated year. Often drafting and implementing game plans behind the scenes, Cook was well-respected by his players — they trusted him. 

So when it was time for a head coaching change, Cook was Dean of Athletics Shawn Harris' choice to step out of the shadows and lead the Warriors from the front.

Harris made the right choice. 

The Warriors just missed the postseason in Cook's first year at the helm a year ago.

This year, his team made history. 

The Warriors will play in their first NAIA National Championship Tournament March 7th or 8th.

"Can't put it into words," Cook said. "I'm proud of our guys."

His guys, as it turns out, are a remarkably resilient, hard-nosed and well-developed group that came together and took the Cal Pac hardware. 

Not Antelope Valley with its record number of wins. 

Not UC Merced with its venerable history of Cal Pac dominance. 

No, it was the character-rich Warriors, who carried themselves with swagger and smiles in the desert, and became the talk of the tournament in the process. 

"Our team understands that we match up well with every team in our conference," Cook said. "UC Merced is well-coached and led by two first-team, all-conference players (Kingsley Obiorah, Mason Westlake). Our game plan included trying to slow down those guys on offense, limiting offensive rebounds and getting the type of shots we wanted on offense."

Obiorah (18 pts) and Westlake (14 pts) found their spots in the first half and made the Warriors pay. 

The Bobcats took a two-point lead into the break at 33-31.

"Coming out in the second half, we hung our hat on the defensive end," Cook said. "And we were able to assert our will on the offensive end."

Westcliff absolutely stifled Merced in the second half. 

Obiorah had six second-half points. 

Westlake, the Cal Pac's all-time leading three-point scorer, had four.

The Bobcats didn't score until the 12:40 mark. 

Meanwhile, the Warriors found the shots they were looking for and dropped 50% from the field, going on a 15-0 run to open the half and claim a 13-point lead. 

Westcliff, which has lived on the three-ball all season, shot 61.5% from range (8-of-13), including 5-of-8 in the first half. 

"It was a total team effort," Cook said. "We had four guys in double digits, almost five. Our senior core of guards — Cap Uzan, Josh Harrison and Abdul Abdullah held us down all night, pacing us with big-time plays and timely buckets on the offensive end. Micaiah Hankins, snubbed for Freshman of the Year, brought heavy production off the bench and provided a great spark for our team."

Harrison led the way with 15 and shot 2-of-4 from beyond the arc. Uzan (two steals) was also lights out from range, hitting 2-of-3 and finishing with 10 to complement four assists.

Abdullah collected his mandatory double-double, finishing with 13 and 11 boards, three on the offensive end to extend possession.  

Hankins finished with 13 on 4-of-6 shooting and 4-of-7 from the line. He also dished out a pair and snagged a pair of cookies. 

Gary Harris just missed double-digits, turning in nine points. He also had two steals and four rebounds. 

Merced enjoyed a seven-rebound advantage (35-28), but gave it back on turnovers, committing 13 to the Warriors' seven. 

The Bobcats refused to roll over in the second half, but they never made it close either. The Warriors' defense was just too good. 

"Don't let go of the rope," Cook said. "Something we preach to the guys. The rope is our principles. Grabbing onto the rope is having complete trust and belief in what we do so we can be successful.

"We emphasized not focusing on the score, but focusing on winning each possession, offense or defense. That created the separation we needed and made sure we didn't play to the score. Instead, we played to win."

Cook says the Warriors put in the sweat equity to become champions. His team fully invested in what the coaching staff preached, "with unwavering belief."

"Our staff's ability to develop players allowed for our roster to improve as the season went on," he said. 

Harris, Uzan, Harrison and Callan Low all stood out as players that made incredible strides from the start of the season to the end, though the entire roster matured, and learned to play as a cohesive cohort.

Now the Warriors will set their sights on making even more history. 

Thursday at 5 p.m. the NAIA will air its selection show and Westcliff will know where it's headed for the opening round. 

In all likelihood, the Warriors are looking at a 13 to 16 seed, as has been the norm for every first-time appearance Westcliff has made at the national level. 

"We are extremely excited to take on our matchup, whoever it is," Cook said. "Our team is built to win in multiple ways. As long as we compete, and lock into our gameplan, we will have an opportunity to win. 

Westcliff has an extremely difficult preseason under its belt already, so whoever is paired on the bracket won't phase the Warriors.

"We have competed with the best of the best already," Cook said. "Wherever we land seeding-wise, expect for Westcliff to be ready to compete as we continue to create history."