SMCC Men's Hoops Hosts Phoenix College in Conference Home Opener

PHOENIX ---

Fresh off a pair of ACCAC Division II road victories, the SMCC men's basketball team (9-1, 2-0 ACCAC Division II) hosts Phoenix College at 4 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 6 in the Cougars' conference home opener. 

Game No. 11

South Mountain Community College (8-1, 1-0 ACCAC)

vs. Phoenix College (5-6, 0-2 ACCAC)

December 6, 2025 | 4:00 PM MST | Phoenix, AZ | The Cougar Den

Media: CLICK HERE for the free video live stream. 

Probable Starters:

South Mountain CC Projected Starters (9-1, 2-0 ACCAC Division II)

G – I'yar Shadowvine, 5'8, FR., Tacoma, WA

G – Parker Escalante, 6'0, RS SO., Mesa, AZ

G – Travis Vasquez, 6'3, RS FR., Glendale, AZ

W – Jadden Jones, 6'2, FR., Glendale, AZ

F – Gak Kueth, 6'6, FR., Peoria, AZ

Phoenix College Projected Starters (5-6, 0-2 ACCAC Division II)

G – Damion Byrd II, 5'11, RS SO., Las Vegas, NV

G – Alijah Greer, 6'2, SO., Glendale, AZ

F – Shakur Davis, 6'2, FR., Tempe, AZ

F – AJ Ajawin, 6'7, SO., Glendale, AZ

F – Marcel Ksiazek, 6'9, FR., Warsaw, Poland

Up Next: Home vs. #8 Pima College| Wednesday, December 10 | 7:30 pm MST | Phoenix, AZ | The Cougar Den

Last Time Out

The Cougars defeated Glendale CC 78-64 in an ACCAC Division II road contest on Wednesday, Dec. 3. Trailing by six at halftime, the Cougars mounted a furious rally early in the second half to tie the game, sustaining that productivity throughout the period to put away the Gauchos. Freshman Travis Vasquez led SMCC with 19 points and tied a season high with five 3-pointers, while freshman Gak Kueth registered his first double-double of the season with 14 points and 12 rebounds. 

CLICK HERE for the full recap and box score. 

The Coaches

Cory Hoff enters his first season at the helm of the Cougar program. Hoff takes over the program after serving the past two years as Associate Head Coach at New Mexico Military Institute, a NJCAA DI program located in Roswell, New Mexico. During Hoff's Career, his programs have achieved a NAIA DI National Championship, two Conference Tournament Championships, one Regular Season Championship, seven Playoff Appearances, 23 Top 25 wins, four All-Americans, 19 All-Conference awards and 14 professionals.

Duane Eason is 82-111 in his seventh year at Phoenix College with a 45-83 record in ACCAC play. Eason is 6-8 against South Mountain CC.

Cougar Stat Leaders

Points: I'yar Shadowvine (15.6 PPG), Blake Carabio (14.5 PPG), Travis Vasquez (13.7 PPG)

Rebounds: Jadden Jones (7.8 RPG), Semajay James (6.7 RPG), Devone Pless (4.8 RPG)

Assists: Travis Vasquez (4.5 APG), I'yar Shadowvine (2.9 APG), Jadden Jones (2.4 APG)

Bear Stat Leaders

Points: AJ Ajawin (17.6 PPG), Jamison Turner (12.1 PPG), Alijah Greer (12.0 PPG)

Rebounds: AJ Ajawin (9.1 RPG), Verney Kamara (4.8 RPG), Shakur Davis (4.2 RPG)

Assists: AJ Ajawin (5.3 APG), Damion Byrd II (4.1 APG), Alijah Greer (3.6 APG)

Watch Live & Stats

Video webcasts for all of SMCC's home games are available at https://portal.stretchinternet.com/southmountaincc/ on Game Day. Game Previews will be posted prior to game day & Game Recaps will be posted after the conclusion of each contest on www.SMCCCougars.com.

Tough Scheduling

SMCC MBB will play 18 conference games against ACCAC opponents, which is one of the toughest conferences in the country. Additionally, SMCC has scheduled five non-conference games against NJCAA DI opponents with College of Southern Nevada, Community Christian College (twice), Miles Community College and Yavapai College on the schedule.

ACCAC Division II Play

The ACCAC Division II is made of seven programs. Each team plays 18 conference games during the season. Last season saw Pima Community College take home the ACCAC Regular Season and Region I Championships. Chandler-Gilbert CC, Glendale CC and South Mountain CC joined them in qualifying for the Region I Playoffs.