COLLEGE OF THE CANYONS NOTEBOOK: PLAYOFFS A NEW GAME COC LOOKING FOR A FINAL RUN.

Byline: Heather Gripp Staff Writer

VALENCIA - The way the College of the Canyons men's basketball team began conference play, a playoff berth appeared out of reach. The Cougars just wanted a victory.

COC started Western State Conference South Division play 0-5, but it used a late-season surge to earn a trip to the Southern California regional playoffs. Like the women's basketball team, which settled for second place after two years of winning titles, the men's team can gain redemption for the regular season with a strong performance in the postseason, which begin Saturday. The COC men face Cerritos at 7 p.m. The seventh-seeded women's team plays host to No. 26 Saddleback the same night.

``A sign of a good team is they get better as the season progresses,'' COC men's assistant coach Jeff Young said. ``I think we've done that. We've been playing much better the past few weeks. If we play our best game Saturday, we can't be disappointed, no matter what the outcome is.''

The Cougars (15-15, 5-7) secured the playoff berth with a 53-47 victory over Citrus in the final game of the regular season. COC finished fifth in the WSC South and is seeded 27th in the 32-team regional tournament. Their opponent, Cerritos, is seeded sixth and has a 24-7 overall record.

``We know who we're playing,'' Young said. ``They're a very good team. There's reason to be concerned. But at this point in the season, you need to be more concerned about your own team than what anyone else is doing. ... We're pleased with where we're at. It's a nice feeling to be going to the playoffs. That was one of our goals.''

--Super sophomores: One of the biggest reasons attributed to the men's basketball team's turnaround is the play of its sophomores.

Ricardo Suazo turned up his all-around game, increasing his scoring average to 9.3 during conference play. He also finished 11th in the conference with an average of 6.9 rebounds. Dax Grooms is making up for a drop in scoring by contributing in other ways - he had 15 rebounds in the last game.

``Our sophomores have done such a good job,'' Young said. ``I don't know if it's a sense of urgency knowing their season and their career at the junior college level is coming to an end, but they've really stepped it up.''

--Supreme Cougars: Despite not winning a winter sports title, COC remains in third place for the WSC Athletic Supremacy award. The annual conference trophy goes to the WSC's most successful school based on team finishes throughout the school year. The Cougars, who had three teams win titles during the fall, trail Moorpark and first-place and defending champion Ventura.

--Upcoming: The Cougars baseball team concludes a two-game, conference-opening series against Citrus on Saturday at home at 1 p.m. ... The track and field teams are at home today for their second WSC meet. ... The swim team is scheduled to compete in the Mt. SAC Relays today and Saturday.