SMCC Men's Hoops Returns Home to Host Phoenix College

PHOENIX ---

The South Mountain Community College men's basketball team hosts rival Phoenix College in Round 3 of The Battle for Phoenix on Saturday at 4:00 p.m.

Game No. 27

(RV) South Mountain Community College (22-4, 11-3 ACCAC)

vs.  Phoenix Community College (8-18, 0-14 ACCAC)

February 14, 2026 | 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

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

G – Travis Vasquez, 6-3, FR-RS, Glendale, AZ

W – Jadden Jones, 6-2, FR, Glendale, AZ

W – Devone Pless, 6-5, FR, Chandler, AZ

F – Dylan Eaddy, 6-5, FR, Atlanta, GA

Phoenix College Projected Starters

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

G – Jamison Turner, 5-7, FR, Glendale, AZ

G – Alijah Greer, 6-2, SO, Glendale, AZ

F – AJ Ajawin, 6-7, SO, Glendale, AZ

F – Eudy Lara-Castillo, 6-8, FR, Maricopa, AZ

Up Next: Home vs. #4 Pima Community College | Wednesday, February 18 | 7:30 pm MST | Phoenix, AZ | The Cougar Den

Last Time Out

Freshmen Gak Kueth and Jadden Jones and sophomore Parker Escalante connected on key baskets down the stretch to help lift the South Mountain Community College men's basketball team to a 68-65 victory at Glendale CC on Wednesday, Feb. 11. Freshman Semajay James led SMCC with 14 points in 22 minutes off the bench. Freshman I'yar Shadowvine added 13 as the Cougars snuffed out any chances of a comeback. The victory ensures SMCC will host a postseason game for the first time in 10 years. 

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. He is 2-0 against Phoenix College.

Duane Eason is 85-123 in his seventh year at Phoenix College with a 45-95 record in ACCAC play. Eason is 6-10 against South Mountain CC.

Cougar Stat Leaders

Points: Blake Carabio (14.4 PPG), I'yar Shadowvine (12.5 PPG), Travis Vasquez (11.7 PPG)

Rebounds: Jadden Jones (7.6 RPG), Semajay James (6.7 RPG), Devone Pless (4.5 RPG)

Assists: Travis Vasquez (4.1 APG), I'yar Shadowvine (2.6 APG), Semajay James (2.3 APG)

Bear Stat Leaders

Points: Damion Byrd II (15.2 PPG), AJ Ajawin (15.1 PPG), Alijah Greer (9.8 PPG)

Rebounds: AJ Ajawin (8.3 RPG), Trystan Williams (4.9 RPG), Varney Kamara (4.4 RPG)

Assists: AJ Ajawin (4.0 APG), Damion Byrd II (3.4 APG), Alijah Greer (2.1 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 (2x), Miles Community College and Yavapai College on the schedule.

ACCAC Play

The ACCAC DII is made up of 7 programs. Each team plays 18 conference games during the season. Last season saw Pima Community College take home the ACCAC Regular Season & Region 1 Championships. Chandler-Gilbert CC, Glendale CC and South Mountain CC joined them in qualifying for the Region 1 Playoffs.