Modesto Christian boys earn three-peat as section champs. What made this title special?

Brice Fantazia says wearing a Modesto Christian uniform has a deep meaning.

It is about being selfless and sacrificing. When you get on the court it’s hustling for every loose ball, making the extra pass and, most importantly, defense. If you’re not on the court, there’s no bad body language. No pouting. You come to Modesto Christian to be part of something bigger and learn life lessons.

“We want to win basketball games, but we want to teach them servant leadership, teach them how to come together and how to be a family,” Fantazia said.

Teams in the past knew what it meant to wear a Modesto Christian uniform early. They were born into it, playing youth basketball together before joining the high school team. This year’s team wasn’t, which made what they were able to accomplish much sweeter.

The Crusaders are 27-5 this season and won their second straight Tri-City Athletic League title outright and on Wednesday at the Golden 1 Center, extended their section-best number of blue banners to 22, beating Lincoln of Stockton 68-63 in a thriller.

They had to do it with nearly an entirely new cast of characters after the graduation of BJ Davis, their leader who was key in delivering the two previous blue banners to Sisk Road and Prince Oseya, another name that will always be mentioned with Modesto Christian basketball for years to come.

This year’s team came together over the course of the season, incorporating new faces with program mainstays with the hopes of once again reaching the mountain top.

“It’s been the hardest year of us coaching kids that my staff and I have ever done and that makes it much sweeter,” Fantazia said. “The fact that we really had to bring this team together, we had to make them understand what it means to wear the Modesto Christian uniform to see it culminate to now where you got kids saying, ‘This is why I came to Modesto Christian’ that just makes it all worth it as a coach.”

The result was history. With Wednesday’s win, Modesto Christian secured the programs first ever three-peat in Division 1. It was a goal they set at the beginning of the season. It’s why so many players endured the long days of conditioning on the track, the weight room sessions and the tough coaching from Fantazia and his staff. It is also why Fantazia returned to Modesto Christian when college programs were knocking at his door.

“Part of me coming back was I wanted to do something that’s never been done at MC,” he said. “I wanted the challenge. I knew we were losing seven seniors, losing kids like BJ Davis and Prince Oseya. I knew there was going to be really blood in the water. Teams were going to want to get Modesto Christian and we really just went to work.”

Jeremiah Bernard became the only player in Modesto Christian history three-peat as a D-I champion. He was a sophomore in 2022, a defensive specialist in 2023 and finished with five points, six rebounds and six assists Wednesday while guarding Lincoln’s best player Anthony Moore from tip off to the final buzzer.

“It was just bringing everybody together and just making everybody feel a part of the family,” Bernard said. “There was a lot of new people transferring in and only a couple of us were here the past few years. When we had the eight or nine (players) it was like OK, let’s get through it, we get to our brothers and when they come back, keep going from there. And then once we got them, we started gelling at the right time and now we’re section champs.”

Wednesday was the third matchup between the two teams hailing from the Tri-City Athletic League.

Modesto Christian got the best of the Trojans both times during league play, winning 68-53 on Jan. 12 and 67-61 Feb. 2, locking up their second straight outright TCAL title on the final day of league play.

But of course, it’s tough to beat a good team three times in a season and when you add the prospects of claiming a blue banner, the game only feels that much bigger.

“It’s tough because we kind of know what they’re gonna do and they know what we’re gonna do,” Jones said of playing Lincoln again.

The Crusaders’ quest for the first D-I three peat in school history was everything one would expect from the third meeting between two very familiar opponents. They were playing for more than a championship. A spot in the CIF State Northern California Open Division playoffs, made of the best teams in California, was on the line. Lincoln would go on a run and Modesto Christian would answer. Modesto Christian converted back-to-back blocks to layups, Lincoln knocked down a three to stay in it.

In the back-and-forth contest, no basket seemed bigger than the one Marcus Washington scored with 1 minute, 16 seconds left in the game. After a missed shot by the Crusaders, both teams fought to come up with the loose ball. Myles Jones kept it in play and when the ball bounced into Washington’s hands, he converted, laying it in to give the Crusaders a 63-57 lead.

Washington has been an energy player for Modesto Christian all season, a role that often gets little recognition. Not Wednesday. The title game was Washington’s best, scoring 21 points, grabbing eight rebounds and blocking three shots.

“It’s a mentality thing,” said Washington, who joined the team from Valley Christian. “I’m going into every game thinking it’s my last. It’s my senior year, I don’t wanna have any regrets. I just want to play hard for my brothers and my family.”

Jones, had arguably his best offensive game this season, scoring 17 points with a pair of made threes. He spent hours leading up to the game getting in extra shooting workouts after practice.

“That was the most fun I’ve ever had playing a basketball game, playing in the Golden 1 Arena, playing for a championship with my guys,” he said with a smile.

Gavin Sykes added 16 points as the three Crusaders combined for 54 of the team’s 68 points.

The Crusaders and Trojans await their NorCal playoff fate as brackets will be released Sunday, Feb. 25. Lincoln will likely be in Division I while the Crusaders are looking at playing in the Open Division for the third straight season.

“We’re not scared to go play anybody. I know a lot of people are going to look at a couple of our losses, and rightfully so, but we want to play the best,” Fantazia said. “I would rather be the five, six seed in the Open than the one seed in Division I. Going to the Open, a lot of people look at it like, oh man, you’re in the open, your chances of winning state are slim-to-none, but to me, when you go to the Open, it’s a special season. That means everything came together and you’re one of the best teams in California.”