Eastfield Stops Cedar Valley in District Quarterfinals

JAYDEN JACKSON INTERVIEW

MESQUITE, Texas – Five players scored in double figures as Dallas College Eastfield beat Dallas College Cedar Valley, 107-98, Tuesday night in the National Junior College Athletic Association Division III South Central District quarterfinals.

The win sends the Harvester Bees (18-13) on to Thursday's 8 p.m. semifinals at Dallas College North Lake for a rematch with No. 8 nationally-ranked Dallas College Richland (15-8). The two teams met in last year's district semifinals, with Richland prevailing.

Eastfield's Jayden Jackson had 20 points, five steals, four rebounds and four assists to pace the Harvester Bees, who got past the Suns for the second straight year in the district quarterfinal round.

"This was a team win," said Jackson, who hit 7 of 11 field goals, and was 4-for-4 at the free throw line.

Eastfield led 94-74 inside the 6:00 mark after Vashney Wright III buried one of his five triples. Cedar Valley (8-19) capped a 6-0 run on Charlie Gutierrez's basket to trim the lead to 14. Braylon Crosby's three-point play with 3:55 remaining pulled the Suns within 97-88. Malik Conley's 3-pointer at the 2:27 mark cut the deficit to six, 99-93, finishing off a 19-5 Cedar Valley run. But the Harvester Bees hung on to advance.

"We just stayed focused," Jackson said. "You can't lose sight of the win no matter what the score is. If you're up or your down, you try to win. That's what we did."

Wright III was 6 of 11 from the floor, including 5 of 9 from long range, to finish with 18 points. DQuarius Burton had 17 points, four rebounds and three steals. Dezmon Dudley had 16 points, seven assists, five rebounds and three steals. Javen Hutton had 12 points, five assists, a steal and a block.

Crosby had a game-high 26 points, going 12-for-13 from the free throw line, six rebounds and five assists for the Suns. Conley had 22 points on 8 of 14 shooting, and eight boards. Gutierrez finished with 15 points, 11 rebounds and four assists. Jude Donovan had 14 points, eight boards and two blocks.

Eastfield, which shot 42 percent, overcame a six-point hole eight minutes into the game. Jackson had back-to-back steals that led to one of his transition buckets and a feed to Hutton for another with 5:14 to play to put the Bees ahead, 37-29. Donovan threw down a dunk to halt Eastfield's 7-0 run. The Harvesters stretched their lead to nine before Gutierrez hit a 12-foot baseline jumper with 1:06 remaining in the first half to cap a 7-0 Cedar Valley surge to pull the Suns within 42-40. Burton canned a triple to beat the buzzer, sending Eastfield into the break leading 47-42.

"It's not just one individual, it's a team," Jackson said, pinpointing Eastfield's flexibility to find production throughout the lineup. "Starters, bench, we need everybody. Everybody brings some type of energy. We always try to find a way to win."

Jackson scored on an ally-oop lay-in off a feed from Hutton with 13:44 to play to put Eastfield on top, 69-54. Jackson hit a triple 3:25 later to maintain the 15-point lead. Wright hit a 3 with 6:52 left, and Burton scored on a drop-off from Hutton to push it to 91-73.

The Harvester Bees hit 15 threes, and went 16-for-19 at the free throw line. The Suns were 2 of 12 from downtown and 26-for-29 at the stripe.

Thursday will signal the third meeting between Eastfield and Richland this season, with the Thunderducks winning the first two, including last week's regular season finale in overtime, 86-83.

"We're just trying to win," Jackson said. "We're trying to go as far as we can. I know we can go far."