Cuesta Men's Basketball team bounced back from the pandemic to reach the cusp of the playoffs. The Cougars were 13-15 overall but recovered nicely from a 3-11 start to enter the final week of the season in playoff and conference title contention. The Western State Conference has released the 2022 All Western State Conference seasonal awards and four members of Cuesta's starting line-up were honored by the circuit. The Cougars' backcourt tandem of Japjit Gill (Union City, CA- pict) and Darryl Brooks II (Menemonee Falls, WI- pict) were joined on the 2022 All-WSC First Team by Forward Juani Dassie (Marcos Juarez, ARG), while Small Forward Kobe Pearson (Melbourne, AUS) earned all-WSC Honorable Mention.
Sophomore Point Guard Japjit Gill (Union City, CA) led a Cuesta attack that featured multiple scoring options. Gill distributed the ball and kept all his shooters in rhythm, while also establishing himself as an offensive threat. Gill began his collegiate career at Chabot College, but made his way to Cuesta for the four game 2020-21 season. Gill was a pass first Point Guard but was at his best against the best and stepped up during conference play to become a legitimate five-tool player. He averaged 9.6 points per game on the season but jumped up to over 13 points a game during WSC play, including a career-high 27 points in the season finale against eventual WSC Champion Ventura. Gill also ended the season as the Cougars' team leader with 4.9 assists per game (20th in the State), while finishing second on the team with 5.1 rebounds and, 1.0 steals per contest. Gill's 4.9 assists per game are tied for 6th best all time on Cuesta's single season list.
2021 Cuesta Team MVP Darryl Brooks II (Menemonee Falls, WI) joined Gill to give the Cougars one of the best and most complete backcourt tandems in school history. Brooks was pure scorer when he arrived on campus, but, like Gill, he did everything on the court to make his teammates better this season. Brooks scoring average dropped by almost four points per game this year, but he made a greater impact on the game. He still led the Cougars in scoring with 12.6 points per game, but also paced his squad with 6.2 rebounds and 1.6 steals per game, while finishing second to Gill with 2.2 assists per contest. Brooks plans to transfer after his second year at Cuesta, but the six-foot, full-court contributor will depart Cuesta tied for 9th all time with 5.8 career rebounds per game and tied for 16th with 13.2 career points per game. Brooks and Gill were almost never off the court. Brooks ranked 8th in the State with 888 total minutes played during the regular season, while Gill was 12th with 842.
Freshman Forward Juani Dassie (Marcos Juarez, ARG) joined Gill and Brooks on the 2022 All-WSC First Team. The sweet shooting southpaw was second on the team with 11.0 points and 4.0 rebounds per game on the season. His 41.7% shooting from beyond the arch earned him a spot in Cuesta's Top 20 (min 50 3FGM) for season. On defense, he led the Cougars in blocked shots per game.
Freshman Forward Kobe Pearson (Melbourne, AUS) was accorded 2022 All-Western State Conference Honorable Mention. Pearson was the Cougars team weathervane. If Kobe was hot the Cougars usually won. Cuesta was 10-4 when he cleared double digits. Pearson netted a team-high 69 three-pointers (30th in the State). He ended the season averaging 10.7 points per contest.
2021-22 WSC Basketball Awards
Japjit Gill- First Team
Darryl Brooks II- First Team
Juani Dassie- First Team
Kobe Pearson- Honorable Mention
