City Gets 6-Seed in 3C2A Tourney; Will Host on Saturday
San Diego City is 3C2A tournament-bound for the 11th consecutive season and has received the No. 6 seed with a first-round bye in the Southern California regionals. The Knights will host a second round playoff on Saturday, March 1 at 7 p.m. against the winner of the No. 11 Cerritos/No. 22 Saddleback matchup.
San Diego City is 3C2A tournament-bound for the 11th consecutive season and has received the No. 6 seed with a first-round bye in the Southern California regionals. The Knights will host a second round playoff on Saturday, March 1 at 7 p.m. against the winner of the No. 11 Cerritos/No. 22 Saddleback matchup.
The Knights went 23-5 overall and won the outright PCAC championship for the second straight year with a 15-1 record. They have now qualified for the playoffs for the 13th time under head coach Mitch Charlens, who earned his second straight PCAC Coach of the Year award in 2025.
San Diego City will enter the postseason having won 10 in a row and 16 of its last 17 games.
The Knights own the No. 1 defense in the state, allowing only 60.0 points per game. They also force the 5th-most turnovers (19.1) and have the 10th-best rebounding average (29.9).
Cerritos (20-8) and Saddleback (12-17) are set to face off on Wednesday, Feb. 26 at 7 p.m. with the winner advancing to play the Knights on Saturday night. San Diego City has not played either team this season, but did defeat Saddleback, 76-58, at the Grossmont tournament on Dec. 1, 2023. The Knights have not met Cerritos since Dec. 2, 2018, an 80-75 loss, also at Grossmont's tournament.
This is the first time in five seasons that San Diego City does not have a top-4 seed in the 3C2A tournament. The top-4 this year includes No. 1 Fullerton, No. 2 Citrus, No. 3 East Los Angeles, who the Knights may face in the next round should they both advance, and No. 4 Mt. San Antonio.
Under Charlens, the Knights won the state title in 2017 and were runners-up in 2018. They have advanced to the sweet sixteen five times, the elite eight four times (including in 2024), the final four twice, and the final twice since he became head coach in 2004.
Admission for the Saturday's playoff at Harry West Gym is $12 for the general public and $8 for students, faculty, staff, senior citizens age 60 and over, and children less than 12 years of age.