Golden Valley Conference Preview
Redwoods (26-4, 9-1): Last season the Corsairs had another stand out season as Redwoods was one of the best teams in Northern California for the 2nd straight season. Redwoods started the season winning their first seven games of the season before having a set back against Los Medanos. The Corsairs went 9-1 the rest of conference action and finished non conference play with a 16-2 record. In conference action, the Corsairs played well but did suffer a slip up against Feather River which ended their 2-0 start in conference play. Redwoods finished conference play on a seven game win streak and brought home the Golden Valley Conference championship and finished the regular season with a 25-3 record. Redwoods was awarded the 6th seed and knocked off Cosumnes River in 2nd round action but the Corsairs fell to College of the Sequoias 58-49 and theeir season ended with a 26-4 record in the sweet 16.
Head Coach: Ryan Bisio
2023-2024 outlook: Coming into the new season not a lot is known about the Corsairs. The Corsairs will lose Jon Nchekwube a walking double double as the big man was lost to graduation. Redwoods does return three players that were mentioned in Treyson Neff, Jett Cheong and Kai Purcell. All three players had standout freshman seasons and are expected to have another solid season. Neff averaged 20.6 points, made 97 three pointers and shot 45% from downtown. Jett Cheong averaged 11.5 points per contest and Kai Purcell comes back to the squad after averaging 9.9 points in his freshman season.
Newcomers: There is a lot of unknown about the Corsairs for the upcoming season as nothing was available to us as press was released.
Projection: It is tough to make a projection of the team for the upcoming season. The three things we know about this team is Trey Neff, Kai Purcell and Jett Cheong are returning to the team. Neff was one of the best freshman shooting guards in the state and could be in store for another explosive season.
Season Opener: TBA
Butte (15-14, 6-4): Last season the Roadrunners started off slow as Butte College lost four of their first five games of the season. In three of those four losses the Roadrunners faced teams that made the post season and the lone win came against the Simpson JV. Butte continued to struggle in non conference play as the Roadrunners couldnt stay in the win column on a consistent basis and as non conference finished Butte had a record of 8-9 and were on the bubble. In conference action, the Roadrunners got off to a slow start with two straight losses against Feather River and Redwoods but won their remaining three games in the first half of conference play and finished with a 3-2 record. Following their five game winning streak as Butte picked up two more wins to start the 2nd half of conference, Butte finished the season losing two of their last three games of the regular season and finished with a 14-13 record. Despite the finish to their regular season, Butte received a post season bid and picked up the 17th seed. In the post season, Butte went on the road in the 1st round and picked up a 72-66 over Ohlone to advance to the next round but lost in the 2nd round against top seeded San Francisco to end their 2022-2023 season.
Head Coach: Jack Martin
2023-2024 outlook: Butte comes into the season with some question marks as they have lost some key pieces from a year ago. The Roadrunners lost three players that averaged in double figures in Rolontae Knowles, Isaac Wood and Ozzy Meadows which accounted for 42 points of their offense and Butte also lost Marvin Lee (6.7 points). Replacing those pieces wont be easy but the Roadrunners will return four players back from last seasons team that won 15 games and made the post season. “6-1” Anthony Montoya leadds the returners that will give Butte sophomore experience. Montoya averaged 7.1 points per game and will look to have more of an impact this upcoming season. “6-6” Tanner Stephens (4.7 points), “6-4” J’Ari Bess (9 games), and “6-6” Taylor Keating (3.0 points) will also return to the Roadrunners. Butte does have four players coming back and will give the Roadrunners some experience returning from last seasons team.
Newcomers: The Roadrunners will look to have an improved season for the upcoming season. “6-11” Jessy Maximin will give the Roadrunners some front court depth and a scoring option for the upcoming season. “5-10” Jordan Saunders (Bahamas), “6-6” Donell Badsen (Bahamas), “6-0” Rashad Samuels (Chico HS, “6-4” Damion Bell (Juan Sequin HS), “6-8” Javion Cooper (College Prep Academy), and “6-2” Joel Conner (Paradise HS) are all names that could contribute this season for the Roadrunners. The Roadrunners added a lot of size and should be the biggest team in the Golden Valley Conference for the upcoming season.
Projection: Butte will look to have a competitive upcoming season as the Roadrunnerrs have a lot of size especially within the Golden Valley Conference. The Roadrunners are usually a team that stays near the top of the conference and this season we do not see that changing. The Roadrunners lost some key pieces but we feel Butte still have a legit chance to get back to the post season and challenge for a conference championship. We project Butte to finish at the top of the conference for the upcoming season and make it to the playoffs.
Season Opener: 11/2 @ Las Positas
Feather River (6-20, 4-6): Last season was a tough year for the Golden Eagles as Feather River struggled in the 22-23 season. The Golden Eagles lost their first eleven games of the season and never fully recovered and could not find the win column consistently the whole season. Feather River finally hit the win column against Cosumnes River and followed that up with another victory over American River but lost their final three games of their non conference schedule and finished with a 2-14 record. In conference play, the Golden Eagles started off hot as Feather River won three of their first four games to start off conference action. Feather River got cold and lost six of their last seven games and finished conference play with a 4-6 record and an overall record of 6-20. The Golden Eagles missed the post season and will look to have an improved upcoming season.
Head Coach: Derek Jensen
2023-2024 outlook: The 2023-2024 Golden Eagles will just about start from scratch and look to have an improved season. A lot has changed for the program and new coach Derek Jensen takes over a program that won 6 games last season. Feather River lost four players that averaged in double figures in Collin Tarver, Terry Williams III, Rober Lee III and Fabian Cox as all four players played significant roles lats season for the Golden Eagles. It will be a brand new start for the program as one player returns from the team. “6-4” Marquis Hall Wagner is the lone player returning and the sophomore averaged 9.7 points and 7.1 rebounds last season and will look to provide experience to the freshmen heavy team.
Newcomers: Plenty of newcomers will step on the floor this season for the Golden Eagles. As we mentioned above, Derek Jensen has taken over the program after spending the past couuple of seasons as head coach at Gavilan College. “6-5” Jonah Crumpton-Murray is coming in from Lower Columbia CC/San Diego City College and is the only other sophomore listed on the team. “6-4” Derrick Monroe, (Clark HS) “6-2” Mikey Johnson (RS Reedley JC), “6-3” Louis Griffin (Cordova), “6-1” Jerel Victor (Angelo Rodriguez), “6-3” Timmy Steed Jr. (Thomson, GA), “6-7” Joshua Carr (Australia), “6-4” Josh Nicholson (Roosevelt), and “6-5” Tai-Run Williams (Vanguard College Prep) will look to contribute for the Golden Eagles in the 2023-2024 season.
Projection: The Golden Eagles come into the season with a lot of question marks with lots of change from a year ago. Feather River has two sophomores for the upcoming season and will lack experience. The Golden Eagles have some athleticism and will be a fairly competitive team coming into the season and athleticism is huge in this conference. We project the Golden Eagles to finish in the upper half of the conference and have them projected for 3rd place out of the five teams that we saw during the preseason but lots of questions will be answered on the fly.
Season Opener: 11/2 vs San Mateo
Siskiyous (16-13, 5-5): Last season the Eagles started off losing two of their first three games but caught fire early in the season. Following the early loss, Siskiyous ran off five wins in their next six games and moved to 5-2. Siskiyous continued to win games and by the time non conference action ended the Eagles had piled up a 11-7 record and were making a post season push. In conference action, Siskiyous started off slow and finished the first half of conference 2-3 record but still needed a couple wins if they were going to make the post season. Siskiyous finished conference in the 2nd half and had a 3-2 record and finished Golden Valley Conference play with a 5-5 record. The Eagles finished the regular season with a 16-11 record and made the postseason. In the post season, Siskiyous was seeded 23rd and suffered a season ending loss against Los Medanos 90-80.
Head Coach: Kyle Heath
2023-2024 outlook: As the new season approaches, the Eagles will look to repeat last seasons success and take a step further and compete for a conference championship. Siskiyous lost four players from last seasons team in Zane Leuth, Braeden Watts, Cade Ealy and Will Dobson but return eight players from a team that won 16 games a year ago. Looking into the upcoming season, “5-11” Dylan Neufeld returns for his sophomore season. Neufeld led the Eagles in scoring last season and averaged 15.4 points per contest in his freshman season. Cole Bernius (8.6 points), “6-4” Nick Dore (6.3 points), “5-10” Josh Allen (4.1 points) “6-0” Landon Ellis (5.2 points), “Cameron Collord (2.1 points), Starz Saavedra (9 games), and Daniel Yancy (10 games) are all back for the upcoming season which will provide so much experience for the Eagles.
Newcomers: Siskiyous will have some new faces on the sidelines for the upcoming season along with a lot of returners for the upcoming season. “6-5” Ajay Hodge (Creswell), “6-1” Logan Westwater (Chico), “6-3” Tanner Jolley (Illinois Valley), “6-9” Bryce Rollins (Ione), “6-2″ Cian Campbell (St. Ignatius)”5-7” Alex Padilla (Chico), and “5-7” Pablo Macias (Klamath Union) are all freshmen that could contribute this upcoming season for the Eagles.
Projection: Coming into the season, the Eagles will have a lot of experience coming back for the upcoming season. Siskiyous has a lot of experience coming back and that will be vital for the Eagles this season. The Eagles return eight players including Dylan Neufeld who led them in scoring last season. With so much experience coming back, we project that Siskiyous will be in the running for the Golden Valley championship and make the post season for the second straight season.
Season Opener: 11/2 vs Columbia
Lassen (7-18, 3-7): The Cougars got off toa slow start in the 2022-2023 season as Lassen lost their first three games of the season. Following the three losses, the Cougars won three of their next four games and were one game under .500. Lassen struggled the rest of the non conference part of their schedule and found the win column one more time with a win over West Hills Coalinga. The Cougars finished non conference play with a 4-11 record and needed to win the conference to get into the post season. Lassen started off conference hot as the Cougars won two straight games with victories over Feather River and Siskiyous. Following the hot start, Lassen cooled off and lost their next three games and finished the first half of conference with a 2-3 record. The Cougars still had an outside shot to win the conference but could not put together a string of wins and finished conference play with a 3-7 record. Lassen missed the post season and went 7-18 overall as the Cougars will look to have an improved 2023-2024 season.
Head Coach: Will Freedman
2023-2024 outlook: Coming into the new season, the Cougars have a lot of pieces to replace as Lassen lost seven players. Lassen lost Darien Guyton, Shelton Taylor, Trey Wilmot, Joey Summers, Cole Rutherford, Mason Saso, and Nathan Smothers which accounted for around 50 points per game. Lassen will bring back two players from a year ago in “6-3” Trey Hagerty (4.6 points)and “6-5” Jackson Krug (3.3 points). The Cougars do not bring back a lot of pieces and Lassen will be a very inexperienced team for the 23-24 season.
Newcomers: Lassen will have a lot of newcomers coming into the program for the upcoming season. “6-3” Erin Chamble is a transfer coming in from Yakima CC and will provide sophomore experience. “6-7” Peter Watson, “6-7” Brady cooper, “6-7” Trenton Mlakar and “6-7” Evan Manville are will give the Cougars size and should contribute this season. “5-9” Biren Stewart-Jones, “6-1” Elijah Blyth, “6-1” Jaydin Morin-Bishop, “6-3” Noah Cruz and “6-5” Qshawn Onegele will also look to contribute this season for the Cougars.
Projection: Lassen brings in a lot of new pieces and do not have a lot of pieces returning from last seasons team. The Cougars have a lot of unknown coming into the new season but have added some size but time will tell how the newcomers mesh together. Lassen will be a competitive team for the upcoming season and could find themselves in the mix in the upper half of the conference. We project the Cougars to finish in the middle of the pack but let us be clear as there does not seem to be a clear cut favorite when it comes to the Golden Valley with the teams that we have saw so far this season.
Season Opener: 11/2 vs Monterey
Shasta (8-21, 3-7): Last season the Knights got off to a slow start as Shasta College started the season losing their first six games of the season. Shasta followed that up winning three of their next four games with victories against American River, Mendocino and Napa Valley. Following the hot stretch, the Knights struggled the rest of non conference with their lone victory coming against San Joaquini Delta and went into conference play with a 5-14 record. In conference play, Shasta lost their first six games in conference but finished off the season winning three of four games to finish with a 3-7 record in Golden Valley Conference action. Shasta finished the season with an overall record of 8-21 and missed the post season.
Head Coach: Kele Fitzhugh
2023-2024 outlook: As the season approaches, the Knights will look to have an improved 23-24 season. Shasta lost four key players from a year ago as Josiah Palumbo, Kevin Cox, Diante Rush and Alex Lewis are gone to graduation. Josiah Hutt was not listed as well on the roster and he averaged in double figures a year ago as well. The Knights will return three players from a year ago and leading the list of returning players is “6-4” Carson Kingston who averaged 7.9 points per game. Kingstons numbers are expected to go up and he should be a go to guy for the Knights. “6-2” Evan Martinez and “6-7” Kameron Morphew (4.7 points) return to the team and will give the Knights some much needed sophomore experience.
Newcomers: Shasta will have plenty of newcomers for the upcoming season. The Knights welcome in “6-3” Ben Keown (Bend, OR), “5-9” Jason Lagdaman (Australia), “6-0” Kyler Contreras (Red Bluff), “6-4” Anthony Sanchez (Redding), “6-9” Chris Phipps , “6-3” Hunter Warren (Redding), “6-2: Tyrese Christie (Springfield, MA) and “6-1” Aramane Collins (Redding) for the upcoming season.
Projection: Shasta will look to have an improved season but the Knights do not return a lot of pieces for the upcoming season. The Knights lost their leading scorer and another standout freshman did not return to the team. Shasta has a lot of unknown pieces that are coming in and with that being said, we feel the Knights will finish in the lower haf of the conference as we have them finishing in 5th place out of the five teams that we actually saw in person.
Season Opener: 11/2 vs Ohlone
2023-2024 Signal The Light Basketball Golden Valley Conference Projection
1.Butte
2. Siskiyous
3. Feather River
4. Lassen
5. Shasta.
TBD: Redwoods
