On the heels of sharing the South Coast Conference South Division title, the Cerritos College men's basketball team was seeded #8 for the Southern California Regional Playoffs. The Falcons (19-9) will receive a bye in the first round and then host #9-seeded Ventura College at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. This will be the second meeting of the season between the two teams, with Cerritos recording a 70-43 win over the Pirates in the Irvine Valley Tournament in the first week of the season.

The Falcons come into the postseason with wins in 14 of their final 16 games, while the Pirates are riding a 12-game winning streak, which includes going 12-0 and capturing the Western State Conference North Division title. Cerritos had a 6-8 record this year against teams that have qualified for the playoffs, while Ventura is 9-5 against playoff teams this season. Of the nine losses by Cerritos this season, eight of them have come against teams will a combined record of 178-47.

The last time the two teams met up in the playoffs, Cerritos recorded a 66-59 win in the 2015-16 season.

Ticket prices for the game will be $12.00 for general admission and $8.00 for all identified students, faculty, staff, senior citizens age 60 and over, and children less than 12 years of age. Only passes accepted are the following: coaches with up-to-date CCCMBCA and CCCWBCA Membership Cards, Athletic Directors with up-to-date CCCADA membership cards, CCCAA Board and MC members and conference commissioners, and CCCAA Life Passes. 

In their earlier meeting this season, Cerritos held Ventura to their lowest scoring output of the year, while limiting them to just 28% shooting from the field. The Falcons netted 50% of their shots, which included going 6-of-14 from three-point range. Sophomore Jacob Washington scored 11 points in the game and added eight rebounds, with injured guard Jahlen Jack posting 10 points. Sophomore point guard Jalen Washington dished out eight assists in the win, with sophomore Jeremiah Galang draining a trio of three-pointers too account for his nine points. On the year, freshman Jaishon Forte leads the team with a 10.9 scoring averages, followed Jacob Washington (10.3) and freshman Doran Harris (10.0)/

Ventura received 13 points from Timothy Turner, who averages 14.5 points on the year, while their leading scorer Dayshone Henry (18.5 points) was limited to just 10 points in that meeting. As a team, the Pirates are averaging 79 points a game, with those two the only ones producing double-digit averages.

The winner will advance to the third round, which will take place the following Saturday, with the winner moving on to the CCCAA State Championships. The state championships are being held at West Hills-Lemoore College this season.

SOUTHERN CALFORNIA REGIONAL PLAYOFFS

1st Round - Wednesday, February 26
#17 Mt. San Jacinto (15-13) @ #16 West Los Angeles (20-8)
#20 Palomar (20-8) # @11 Citrus (19-9)
#21 Irvine Valley (16-12) @ #13 Chaffey (23-5)

#18 Antelope Valley (13-15) @ #15 Saddleback (18-10)
#22 LA Southwest (17-10) @ #10 San Diego City (23-5)
#19 Cypress (16-12) @ #16 San Bernardino Valley (19-9)

2nd Round - Friday, February 28
#9 Ventura (21-7) @ #8 Cerritos (19-9)
#12 Allan Hancock (22-6) @ #7 Southwestern (24-4)

2nd Round - Saturday, February 29
Mt. San Jacinto/West Los Angeles winner @ #1 Santiago Canyon (26-2)
Palomar/Citrus winner @ #5 Riverside (19-9)
Irvine Valley/Citrus winner @ #4 Santa Monica (20-8)

Antelope Valley/Saddleback winner @ #2 East Los Angeles (27-1)
LA Southwest/San Diego City winner @ #6 Fullerton (22-5)
Cypress/San Bernardino Valley winner @ #3 Los Angeles Valley (23-5)