COMMUNITY COLLEGE NOTEBOOK : Rancho Santiago Men Regroup After Tumbling From the Top

The lofty path that the Rancho Santiago College men’s basketball team has cut the first two months of the season has made the Dons the most celebrated team in Orange County.

Rancho Santiago opened with 17 consecutive victories and was the top-ranked team in the state for a month.

But after an 81-71 loss to Santa Monica Friday, Rancho Santiago will have little trouble finding something to focus on for the upcoming Orange Empire Conference race that starts Wednesday.

No longer will the Dons be dreaming of an undefeated season and a state title. There are more immediate concerns.

Rancho Santiago (17-1) isn’t the overwhelming pick to win the title outright. Instead, the Dons share that role with Cypress (14-3).

But Orange Coast (11-4) and Golden West (13-6) also played well in the nonconference part of the season. Riverside is 11-8, Fullerton 8-9 and Saddleback 7-9 to round out the conference.

The Orange Empire has been one of the best conferences in the state the last two seasons, with six of the seven teams reaching the playoffs each year.

“We thought when this season started we might have a leg up on the other teams,” Rancho Santiago Coach Dana Pagett said. “But here we are again, with every game going to be a struggle.”

Here is a brief look at each team:

Cypress: Billed as the team of big men because of four players 6-feet-9 or taller, Cypress’ shorter players have been carrying the load of late. Sophomore 6-foot guard Grayle Humphrey has made a team-record 37 consecutive free throws and and Vince Hizon, a 6-2 sophomore forward, is averaging a team-high 15 points. Sophomore forward Andre Lamoureux, who is averaging 14 points, and freshman center Eric Pauley started impressively but they have slowed some in the last two weeks.

Fullerton: Fullerton is led by sophomore Rashone Lewis, a 6-6 forward who transferred from Cal State Fullerton. Lewis, who led the county in scoring with 22.2 points a game, is joined up front by sophomore Darryl Griffin. Mark Rudometkin returns at small forward and Roy Joseph and Donell Henderson are in the backcourt. Henderson leads the team with 4.6 assists a game.

Golden West: The Rustlers return center Alex Kreps and forwards J.J. Jenkins and Kevin Andersen. Kreps leads Golden West with a 20.4-point average. Early in the season, freshman Ric Van Scoyce turned the ball over often, but he has played well in the last two weeks. Craig Rice transferred from Rancho Santiago and has being splitting time with Tom Dever at the other guard spot.

Orange Coast: The Pirates return three starters up front, Alan Schlines, Scott DeStefano and Chip Hanlon. Hanlon leads the team with a 16.8-point average, Schlines is second (16) and DeStefano is third (14.2).

Sophomores Marland Love and Paul Kos are in the backcourt with help from freshman Bill Maurer. Brian Spratt, a freshman forward, backs up the front line.

Rancho Santiago: The Dons are led by sophomore center Matt Lien (19 points a game) and sophomore forward Gene Altamirano (15.2). Freshman forward Corie Blount joins returning sophomore guard Alvin Loftis and freshman LaVern Broadnax in the starting lineup.

With sophomores Mike Hunter, John Guerrero and Mo Warner coming off the bench, Rancho Santiago is the most experienced team in the conference.

Riverside: The defending conference champions have no returning players, and coach Bob Boyd has left for Chapman College. Bob Schermerhorn is the new coach. Freshman forward Greg Steinstra leads the team with a 12.7-point average.

Saddleback: Bill Brummel, who took a year off to work as a volunteer assistant under Bob Knight, is back with the Gauchos. Saddleback, which returns guards Sean Keyes and Lesean London, has switched to a transition offense because at 6-4, Terrell Malone is the tallest player.

Charles Lockard, a freshman guard, leads the team in scoring with 19.4 points a game.

Women’s basketball: About 24 hours after the Rancho Santiago men’s team lost, the Golden West women’s team saw its season-opening 19-game winning steak end.

The Rustlers were defeated by Yakima Valley of Washington, 83-78, Saturday in the championship game of the Fullerton tournament.

Despite the loss, Golden West still is favored to win the conference title for the third time in the last four seasons. Fullerton, the defending champion, is 8-9.

Golden West will face its toughest challenge when the Rustlers play Orange Coast (16-3) Wednesday at OCC.

Saddleback and Cypress dropped their programs last season. Both schools are back this season. Saddleback is 9-8 under first-year coach Jack Single. Cypress, which recruited its team from students in October, is 0-14.