by Matthew Henry
Taft Midway Driller

 VISALIA – Central Valley Conference pace setter College of the Sequoias used its speed and quickness here Saturday to overwhelm Taft College 90-33 in a Central Valley Conference basketball game.

The Giants showed why they are undefeated in the conference (9-0), ranked No. 1 in northern California and No. 2 in the state when they blew open what started out as a close game.

The Cougars led 12-11 after Angie Banks dropped in a free throw with 14:10 left in the first half.  But over the next seven minutes the Giants went on a 20-4 run en route to a 38-21 lead at the half.

Sequoias came out hot in the second half and buried the Cougars with a 26-7 run in the first 10 minutes.  The Giants outscored the Cougars by 40 points in the second half alone – 52-12. 

Not only do the Giants play solid offense with their quickness and crisp passes that lead to good looks at the hoop and frequent scoring runs, they use those attributes to stifle their opponents' offense.

The Giants shot 48.6 percent from the field on 34-of-70 and held the Cougars to 26.7 percent (12-of-45).  Sequoias' shooting percentage included 12-of-24 from outside the arc, accounting for three more points (36) than the Cougars scored in the entire game.

To complete the domination, Sequoias out-rebounded the Cougars 45-26 and forced 24 turnovers.

No Cougar got into double figures.

Banks and Amber Vaughn scored eight points each and Carrie Graham and Emilee Davidson had five apiece.  Meanwhile, five Giants scored in double figures.

The Cougars will try to shake it off on Wednesday when they host Reedley College (5-4 CVC, 13-12 overall) in the Al Baldock Cougar Sports Center.  Tipoff is at 6 p.m.

CVC Standings:
COS 9-0 (24-3)
Fresno 6-2 (18-8)
W. Hills 5-4 (17-8)
Reedley 5-4 (13-12)
Merced 3-5 (5-16)
Taft 2-6 (8-14)
Porterville 0-9 (6-18)