Destiny Christian rolls, earns much-desired CIF section semifinal showdown against Jesuit
The president of the school was ringing his hands in anticipation. So, too, in a matter of speaking, was the head coach and athletic director.
Destiny Christian Academy hosting one of the brand name high school basketball teams in all of Northern California next week in a showcase of private-school powerhouse programs and Bee-ranked Top 10 teams all season?
Game on, so says the movers and shakers at DCA.
Top seeded in the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division II boys basketball bracket, Destiny Christian rolled Antelope 68-45 on Friday night in a quarterfinal round, setting up the much-anticipated showdown with No. 4-seeded Jesuit on Feb. 25.
Jesuit beat Lodi 60-39 as 6-foot-5 guard leader Asher Schroeder scored 20 points against his former school.
The winner between DCA-Jesuit earns a shot to play for the section championship against the survivor of the other side of the bracket between No. 3-seeded Woodcreek and No. 2 Rocklin. The finals are Feb. 27 at Golden 1 Center, home of the Sacramento Kings.
“We knocked off Christian Brothers in the football playoffs in the fall, and if we can beat Jesuit, oh wow, that would be big against the Catholics,” said DCA president Scott Hagan, a big man full of good spirit.
Jesuit opened in 1963, and DCA opened on an old campus with new ambitions at the start of this academic year. The campus, located off Highway 50 just south of Rancho Cordova, housed Capital Christian High for 42 years before a summer church takeover.
All of the buildings and floors were scrubbed clean of the previous era and replaced with sparkling new blue school colors and a giant Lions mascot on the basketball floor. Students returned to campus in the fall quarter with a new brand and the aim of making a new name for the school.
DCA was The Bee’s top-ranked basketball team in the preseason, led by 2024 Bee All-Metro senior guard Jaylen Valdez, who is been in the running for Bee Player of the Year honors. He scored 18 on Friday to lead the Lions.
The prospect of squaring up against a Jesuit program that played for its first major championship in 1969 and has since won 11 section crowns overall is enough to even make grown men a bit giddy.
Across the floor from Hagan was DCA athletic director Aaron Garcia, who as football coach savored the 28-7 playoff victory that elimianted Christian Brothers in the playoffs.
As for this semifinal, Garcia said enthusiastically, “Oh yeah, this will be a great atmosphere Tuesday with Jesuit here. We have all the respect in the world for Jesuit and what that school has done over the years. We’d like to schedule games like this in the regular season, but to have it happen organically, in the playoffs, is really cool.”
DCA coach Mike Lorente would like to play Jesuit every season in a nonleague game, to create a rivalry. It’s happened just once, several seasons ago, and Jesuit beat DCA when it went by Capital Christian two years ago in a semifinal.
“One thousand percent!” Lorente said when asked if he’d relish such a showdown next week.
DCA is anchored by Valdez, the 6-foot-3 senior guard and fourth-year varsity starter with a good memory. He said he is burning for another shot at Jesuit, having started for Capital Christian when Jesuit prevailed in a semifinal two years ago.
Valdez is joined in the backcourt by fellow point guard Frederick Blue and 6-foot-6 front-court stoppers, rebounders and leapers in Mohamed Kamara, Jephte Tambala and Myles Wiggins. Lorente said Kamara “is the best defender in Sacramento. He can guard all positions.”
The coach raved about the leadership of Valdez and the group in general. Home games are festive, especially when Jim Reber’s school band is playing. Friday was the end of winter break for DCA, so it wasn’t as noisy as usual, and the band wasn’t there. They will be there to face Jesuit.
“Our guys have a chip on their shoulder,” Lorente said. “They’re upset that they lost early in the playoffs last year. They’re ready. They know that (with the church takeover) that people have poured into them spiritually and financially, and they feel that they owe it to everyone to play well. Great kids.”
Lorente added of the Jesuit game, “It’s poetic. We’re built for this. We started the season with this moment in mind. We’re building something special here, doing it the right way, and something to last. We don’t take any game lightly, and our guys are hell-bent on winning the section title.”
More Division II
In Rocklin’s 56-54 win over 10th-seeded Sacramento, a team coming off section championship wins in D-III the previous two seasons, the Thunder turned the game on one late possession.
The Thunder grabbed four offensive rebounds, three by Ely Willis, to burn clock. Sacramento could not get a clean shot off at the buzzer. Mark Lavrenov, a 6-8 senior forward headed to Sacramento State on scholarship, powered inside for 25 points for Rocklin. Willis had 10 and fellow senior guard Josiah Andrews had 12.
▪ In No. 3 Woodcreek’s 64-49 triumph over Grant, Zach Bualat hit a deep top-of-the-key 3-pointer late for a three-point lead, and the Timberwolves of Roseville held on, 54-49.
Michael Kirby Jr. had 20 points to lead Woodcreek, and 6-8 big man Max VanLaningham led the team in rebounding and interior defense, scoring 14 points, grabbing 17 rebounds and blocking 11 shots. He will bang against Lavrenov in a semifinal in a meeting of Placer County schools.
Division I race
Top-seeded Modesto Christian beat Franklin of Elk Grove 71-61 in a large-enrollment quarterfinal as the Crusaders seek a section championship four-peat. The Crusaders have been led the last two seasons by Sacramento-area born star guards Myle Jones and Gavin Sykes.
▪ Fourth-seeded Lincoln of Stockton bounced No. 5 Monterey Trail 77-43 and now takes on Modesto Christian for a third time. In Tri-City Athletic League action, Modesto Christian beat the Trojans 76-72 and 80-72 in overtime.
▪ Second-seeded Inderkum, top-ranked by The Bee the second half of the season, eliminated Weston Ranch of Stockton, 72-51, behind sophomore guard Siincere Hudson and 305-game winning coach Fred Wilson to set up a super semifinal showdown at home against No. 3-seeded Folsom.
▪ Folsom blasted sixth-seeded Vanden of Fairfield 76-37 as 6-5 senior guard Chase Rawlins scored 16 points and 6-6 junior forward Joven Dulay had 12.
Sac-Joaquin Section quarterfinals
DIVISION I
Modesto Christian 71, Franklin-Elk Grove 61
Folsom 76, Vanden 37
Lincoln-Stockton 77, Monterey Trail 43
Inderkum 72, Weston Ranch 51
Tuesday semifinals
No. 4 Lincoln at No. 1 Modesto Christian
No. 3 Folsom at No. 2 Inderkum
DIVISION II
Destiny Christian 68, Antelope 45
Jesuit 60, Lodi 39
Woodcreek 54, Grant 49
Rocklin 56, Sacramento 54
Tuesday semifinals
No. 4 Jesuit at No. 1 Destiny Christian
No. 3 Woodcreek at No. 2 Rocklin
DIVISION III
Christian Brothers 51, Fairfield 45
Twelve Bridges 73, River Valley 45
Burbank 70, Roseville 62
El Capitan 67, Placer 54
Tuesday semifinals
No. 4 Twelve Bridges at No. 1 Christian Brothers
No. 10 El Capitan at No. 6 Burbank
DIVISION IV
Natomas 91, West Campus 63
Venture Academy 82, Marysville 54
Ripon Christian 53, Colfax 46
Casa Roble 82, Ripon 56
Tuesday semifinals
No. 5 Venture Academy at No. 1 Natomas
No. 3 Ripon Christian at No. 2 Casa Roble
DIVISION V
Woodland Christian 70, Western Sierra 57
Bret Harte 63, Futures 51
Fortune 79, Westlake Charter 49
Argonaut 73, Big Valley Christian 52
Tuesday semifinals
No. 4 Bret Harte at No. 1 Woodland Christian
No. 3 Fortune at No. 2 Argonaut
DIVISION VI
Stone Ridge Christian 85, Sacramento Adventist 33
Elite 66, Victory Christian 47
Vacaville Christian 69, Stockton Christian 55
Sacramento Waldorf 60, Foresthill 54
Tuesday semifinals
No. 5 Elite at No. 1 Stone Ridge Christian
No. 3 Vacaville Christian at No. 2 Sacramento Waldorf
This story was originally published February 21, 2025 at 10:41 PM.