SMCC Men's Basketball Hosts Scottsdale CC on Sophomore Night

PHOENIX ---

The South Mountain Community College men's basketball team begins the final week of the regular hosting Scottsdale Community College on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. as they prepare for the ACCAC Region I Division II playoffs.

The Cougars will honor their three sophomores (Blake Carabio, Parker Escalante, and Brandon Mangahas) in a pre-game ceremony before the contest and after the completion of the women's game. 

Game No. 29

South Mountain CC (23-5, 12-4 ACCAC) vs. Scottsdale CC (15-12, 9-7 ACCAC)

February 25, 2026 | 7:30 PM MST | Phoenix, AZ | The Cougar Den

Media: CLICK HERE for the free live stream

Probable Starters:

(RV) South Mountain CC Projected Starters

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

G – Blake Carabio, 6-1, SO, Peoria, AZ

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

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

F – Gak Kueth, 6-6, FR, Peoria, AZ

Scottsdale CC Projected Starters

G – Conway Cummard, 6-0, FR, Mesa, AZ

G – Davion Harris, 6-2, FR, Chandler, AZ

G – McCade Peterson, 6-4, SO, Mapleton, UT

G – Coleman Fields, 6-4, SO, Goodyear, AZ

F – Tylan Holleman, 6-8, SO, Lynden, WA

Up Next: Away vs. Mesa CC | Saturday, February 28 | 4 p.m. MST | Mesa, AZ | Theo Heap Gymnasium

Last Time Out

The Cougars lost 77-65 to No. 4 Pima CC in an ACCAC Division II contest at the SMCC Gym on Wednesday, Feb. 18. Freshman Travis Vasquez led the Cougars with 18 points, and freshman Devone Pless added 12. Still, the Cougars could not overcome the Aztecs' timely shooting in the loss.

CLICK HERE for the full recap and box score.

The Coaches

Cory Hoff is in his first season at the helm of the Cougar program. Hoff takes over the Cougars 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. Hoff is 2-0 against Scottsdale CC.

Zac Harrison is 15-12 in his first year at Scottsdale Community College with a 9-7 record in ACCAC play. Harrison is 0-2 against South Mountain CC.

Cougar Stat Leaders

Points: Blake Carabio (14.1 PPG), I'yar Shadowvine (12.4 PPG), Travis Vasquez (12.2 PPG)

Rebounds: Jadden Jones (7.4 RPG), Semajay James (6.6 RPG), Devone Pless (4.4 RPG)

Assists: Travis Vasquez (4.0 APG), I'yar Shadowvine (2.4 APG), Semajay James (2.3 APG)

Fighting Artichoke Stat Leaders

Points: Quincy Kirk (13.1 PPG), McCade Peterson (11.8 PPG), Bryce Anderson (10.8 PPG)

Rebounds: Bryce Anderson (5.5 RPG), Quincy Kirk (5.4 RPG), McCade Peterson (5.3 RPG)

Assists: Quincy Kirk (3.5 APG), Davion Harris (3.1 APG), Conway Cummard (2.5 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 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.

This year, SMCC has locked down the No. 2 seed in the NJCAA Region I Division II Tournament and will host the No. 3 seed on Thursday, Mar. 4 at 7:30 p.m. in one of two semifinals. Pima CC is the No. 1 seed. 

The No. 3 and No. 4 seeds are still up for grabs with SCC currently in third at 9-7, Glendale CC fourth at 8-8, and Mesa CC at fifth at 7-9. GCC hosts Chandler-Gilbert while MCC has to travel to Pima CC on Feb. 25.

MCC hosts SMCC on the final day of the regular season, Feb. 28, while SCC hosts Glendale.