Pirates focus on Fullerton

Colleges column by BarryOrange Coast College men’s basketball coach Steve Spencer acknowledges the buzz surrounding his team’s Orange Empire Conference showdown at Fullerton Wednesday night.

And while he is glad it exists -- the apathy that often envelopes community college athletics is a dreary alternative -- Spencer would like for it to avoid the attention of his players.

“If you start looking at all the hype and people congratulating you, you can get lost as to what you’re trying to do,” Spencer said.

It has been years since the OCC men’s basketball program has generated much interest, not to mention 27 seasons since the Bucs last earned a conference championship.

To put that into perspective, the last OCC championship team, which went on to claim the state title in 1978-79, preceded the existence of ESPN.

This year’s Pirates are 18-7, 5-0 in conference, ranked No. 5 in the state and No. 3 in Southern California.

Fullerton is 25-0, 5-0, and No. 1 in both coaches’ polls.

Tipoff is 5:30 p.m.

“Playing in a big game like this is definitely a new experience for us,” said Spencer, who believes his team’s ability to maintain a tight focus has helped put it in this position.

“You go into every season with the goal in mind of competing for a conference championship,” said Spencer, in his fifth season at the helm. “But you try to concentrate on the process of getting better, day by day. The opportunity in front of us Wednesday is one we’re happy about and one the kids have earned. But the kids can’t focus on the result, at the expense of the process of just working hard each day.”

* In addition to focus, Spencer cites balance and depth as his team’s most notable strengths.

“Any given night, a different player can lead us in points, rebounds, steals and assists,” Spencer said. “We stress playing hard, playing together and playing smart and our guys have played together all season. With the type of balance we have, it’s harder to key on any one player. We’re harder to guard, because we have numerous people who can score.”

* Sophomore point guard Lance Ortiz leads five Pirates averaging at least 9.5 points with a 12.6 per-game clip. Ortiz also leads the team in assists (5.3 per contest). His 4.2 rebounds per game are third-best on the team.

“Lance has been our most consistent player,” Spencer said. “I think he’s the best point guard in the league and he has been a big part of what we’ve accomplished.”

* Sophomores Reggie Brown (11.5 ppg), Matt Davis (9.7) and Greg Okudibonye (9.5), as well as freshman Steve Cornett (9.5), have helped OCC maintain offensive balance.

Cornett, a 6-foot-7 center whom Spencer recruited from one of his physical education classes, leads a productive bench that runs deep.

“The way we play [with frenetic defensive pressure on the ball], we need to sub,” Spencer said. “We’ve got to have a 10-man rotation and our bench has been huge. There’s not a guy on our [18-man] roster I wouldn’t feel OK about putting in the game.”

* Fullerton, under the direction of ninth-year coach Dieter Horton, is led by 6-9 sophomore Michael Earl (18.2 points, 7.9 rebounds per game). Sophomore guards Corey McIntosh (13.6 ppg) and Tim Denson (13.4 ppg) are also productive, as is freshman Rodrick Johnson (11.0 ppg).

* The OCC-Fullerton men’s matchup isn’t the only big game among locals. The Vanguard women (16-0, 9-0 in the Golden State Athletic Conference), ranked No. 1 in NAIA Division I, visit No. 9-ranked Azusa Pacific (15-4, 7-2), tonight at 5:30 p.m. in GSAC play.

The UC Irvine men put their six-game Big West Conference winning streak on the line with a rematch against Cal State Fullerton Wednesday (7 p.m. at UCI), before visiting second-place Long Beach State Saturday (5 p.m. at the Walter Pyramid).

The Anteaters (10-8) debuted in the CollegeInsider.Com mid-major top 25 poll Monday at No. 25.

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