Sports
Chabot Basketball Stars Attract D1, D2, NAIA Programs
Jabari Sweet has received strong interest from three Div. I schools, and women's players Zaikya Mahoney and Nyah Willis also on D-I radar.
The Chabot College men’s basketball team, fresh off a rebound season in which it advanced to the CCCAA regional playoffs, is figuring prominently in recruiting circles during a time when on-campus visits have stopped due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Gladiators have four players who are very much on the radar of four-year schools. Jabari Sweet (6-8, 215) of Sacramento has strong interest from three Division I programs: Arkansas-Pine Bluff, New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) and University of Omaha. Sweet was a first-team All-Coast-North selection after averaging 13.0 points and 7 rebounds a game.
Dublin High graduate Kyle Brown (6-5, 200) is receiving strong interest from Division 2 Southwest Baptist in Bolivar, Mo. and other Div. 2 programs. Southwest Baptist finished with a 20-9 record last season.
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Akili Daniels (6-2, 210) of Sacramento has interest from D2 Western Oregon and NAIA Dillard-New Orleans. Micah Webster (6-0, 185), a James Logan High graduate, has interest from NAIA Missouri State.
The Gladiators (17-12, 8-6) finished in a three-way for third place in the powerful Coast-North, and then dropped a heartbreaker against Diablo Valley in the CCCAA NorCal Regional playoffs. Izaiah Veal paced Chabot with 26 points and Daniels added 13 points in the loss.
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MAHONEY GETS LOOKS FROM MID-MAJORS
After a stellar 2019-20 season, Chabot sophomore Zakiya Mahoney, an All-State selection, has received interest from the Big West, WCC, WAC and Mountain West schools, according to Gladiators coach Mark Anger.
The Gladiators (24-6, 8-2) earned a share of the Coast-North title and advanced to the CCCAA Women’s Basketball State Quarterfinals. Unfortunately, as the playoffs were about to start, the season was cut short due to concerns over COVID-19.
Mahoney, a former Bishop O’Dowd standout who averaged 18.4 points and 9.8 rebounds per game last season, has received calls from mid-majors on the East Coast. Standout freshman Nyah Willis (15.6 ppg, 5.7 rpg), a Valley Christian-San Jose graduate who shot 34.5% from 3-point range, has received low D1 and numerous D2 offers and is weighing whether to return for her sophomore year at Chabot.
Sophomore point guard Angie DeFranco, a Hayward graduate, is getting looks from D2 schools and some academic D3’s.