Comets chop down Giants to reach Final Four

LEMOORE, CA (3/10/2023) --  No. 2 Palomar College put on a dominating performance against No. 3 College of the Sequoias in the CCCAA State Quarterfinals on Friday night with a 88-49 victory to advance to their second Final Four in program history.

The Comets were in control the entire game, playing true to their style of basketball. Sophomore guard Deajanae Harvey got the Comets out to an 11-0 lead before Sequoias scored their first basket. Sequoias strung some possessions together and kept it close through the end of one, with a 19-12 Comet lead, but Palomar kept their foot on the gas, outscoring the Giants 26-10 in the second. It was the day's most dominating performance, and the second half hadn't even begun yet.

Harvey and the Comets kept pushing the pace and had a massive 27-9 third quarter to put the game away. Palomar slowed the game down in the fourth quarter as Sequoias outscored them 18-16, but in the end it was all Comets as they advanced to the second day of the tournament, a first since the 2016-17 season.

The Comets put up 42 points in the paint and scored 23 points off turnovers after forcing 22. After last week's back-and-forth battle to earn a spot in the Elite Eight, the Comets led the entire game and at one point had a 49-point lead. Harvey recorded yet another double-double, 39 points and 10 assists, and just missed her second triple-double with eight rebounds and nine steals. Sophomore Camille Sroufe finished the night with 18 points, 6-17 beyond the arc, three rebounds and one steal. Freshman Teanna Alaman rounded out the double-digit scorers with 13 (6-11). She totaled five rebounds and one steal. The Comets had five blocks on the night, with sophomore Gabby Sebit recording three. Sophomores Faith Schwantner and Rory Hetrick each had one. 

The Comets advance to 31-0 on the season and will face No. 1 seed from the north, Butte College tomorrow night for a 7 p.m. tip.