Jimmy Saia wasn't around here in the '90s when Boyd Grant was spinning his magic with the help of Ron Adams' sticky matchup zone defense.
But the Sunbirds men's basketball coach (left, photo) has adopted a similar 1-1-3 alignment that seems to be turning things around for his team.
After losing to then-No. 3 Concordia 63-61 in Irvine on Jan. 23 on a last-second shot, the Sunbirds have won four in a row, including this week's 81-61 home blowout of No. 3 Biola.
"We've found ourselves defensively with the 1-1-3," Saia told me tonight after his team won at Point Loma Nazarene. "It's the old Boyd Grant defense. The team likes it and it's
a good identity for us. We're playing at a good pace right now."
This is the right time for the Sunbirds to get hot. They're sitting in fifth place in the Golden State Athletic Conference and the top six move on to nationals. But, they're just a game out of third place.
Fresno Pacific has seven games left -- four at home -- starting Thursday with a 7:30 p.m. test against Vanguard at the Special Events Center. For more on the Sunbirds, check out their Web site page here.
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