Colusa Counting on Depth Against Christian

The Colusa High School boys’ basketball team doesn’t have the state’s leading scorer or a player nearly as skilled as Christian’s Tony Clark. But the Redskins have something Christian lacks--depth and tradition.

Colusa (27-2), Christian’s opponent today in the Division V state final at 4:15 p.m. at Oakland-Alameda Coliseum, played for the 1987 state Division III title, losing to Santa Monica Crossroads.

The Redskins have been in Division V the past three years and are the state’s top-ranked team in that class according to Cal-Hi Sports. They have won the Butte View League six of the past seven years and made it to the Northern Section playoffs seven years in a row.

Last year, they didn’t make it past the second round.

“We’re in a very competitive Division V area,” Colusa Coach Jim Vossler said. “We get quality teams to play.

“We thought we’d do well in the Northern Section, and anything above that would be a bonus.”

Colusa plays an up-tempo game, which shouldn’t cause problems for Southern Regional champion Christian (19-11 and ranked third by Cal-Hi Sports). The Patriots reached the state final by easily defeating Canoga Park Faith Baptist, also a fast-paced team.

“They play up-tempo and get the ball on court,” Christian Coach Randy Wright said. “If we can get in the half court, we’ll be fine. We’ve made a few minor adjustments to attack their pressure.”

Three of Colusa’s four seniors are returning all-league players. Jayson Vossler and Mario Reveles were co-most valuable players in the league this season.

The two were the team’s leading scorers last year. This year it’s Vossler, a 6-2 guard, who leads the team with a 23-point average. Reveles, a 6-2 forward, averages 17.

Vossler made an eight-foot shot with five seconds remaining to clinch a 81-79 victory over Denair in the Northern Regional final last weekend.

Vossler, Reveles, 6-5 center Brian Bledsoe and 6-2 forward Joe Garofalo all scored in double figures in Colusa’s playoff games.

“Depth is our strength,” Vossler said. “We have good backups. We’re pretty deep.”

Vossler’s prime concern, of course, is 6-8 Clark.

“I’ve talked to other coaches about him, and they say ‘phenomenal, awesome, fantastic,’ ” Vossler said. “We don’t have anyone to match up one-on-one with him.”

Colusa’s tallest player is Bledsoe, a junior.

Wright said if Christian can get the ball inside to Clark and 6-6 Dave Piester, the Patriots should be able to score. Christian’s shortest starter is 5-10 junior Jeff Rose. Colusa’s is 5-7 senior guard Derrek Lee.