It’s been close to a decade since Chico made the playoffs, and even longer since the Dragons got a postseason win.
Neither of those played a factor in the Dragons’ 2A Division II bi-district contest with top-seeded Tom Bean Monday. Chico upended the District 14-2A champions 58-53 at Sanger High School, handing the Tomcats their first loss since Dec. 30, 2025.
“I’ve been telling my kids for a while now that if we show up, we can play with anyone. Hopefully after tonight, they fully believe it,” said Chico coach Tyler Renfro, who collected his 50th career win Monday. “That was a huge win for these boys, who have been working their butts off. It was an all-around team win.”
After trailing the majority of the first half, Chico took the lead via Landon Cuevas.
The sophomore guard shook his man off while driving to the lane, then got a shot to fall. Senior guard Jordan Weiland added two more the next possession to give the Dragons a 29-26 advantage at halftime.
Weiland was held to just 2 points in the first quarter, facing double teams and being face guarded by defenders all night. But in the second period he came alive, burying two 3-pointers and scoring 10 to help put the Dragons ahead.
“After that first three falls, everything just kind of clicks from there. I’ve always been that way,” Weiland said. “Those first few rimmed in and out, but teammates kept finding me, getting me the ball and trusting me to knock down the shots. Once we all get rolling together, no one is going to stop us.”
Tom Bean took back the lead for a brief moment early in the third quarter, but Chico guard Devin Akers became a spark plug off the bench for the Dragons. After landing two putback attempts to put Chico back up 37-35, the scoring flurry cornered the Tomcats into a timeout.
Out of the break, Talon Smith came off a screen to bury a three from the top of the key. Weiland put his signature on the third quarter by going coast-to-coast for a two-hand slam, keeping the Dragons up 43-39 going into the fourth frame.
Smith scored 16 points for the Dragons and hit four shots from deep. Smith said he knew he had to step up when Weiland was facing an onslaught of Tom Bean defenders.
“I wasn’t really trying to take over the game or anything, but I knew anytime Jordan was being doubled or something, I had to be there to help him out,” Smith said. “Right there on that right wing, that’s the best spot for me every time.”
While Chico had the momentum in the final 8 minutes, Tom Bean kept finding ways to keep the Dragons in check with its shot making. But inside of 90 seconds to play, Chico’s postseason inexperience was a complete non-factor.
Chico went 10-for-11 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter, negating Tom Bean’s fouling strategy late.
Tom Bean guard Jace Sullivan buried a desperation 3-pointer to cut Chico’s lead to 56-52 with 19 seconds to play, then forward Jacob Lind tacked on a free throw, but the efficiency from the charity stripe by the Dragons neutralized the Tomcats’ comeback attempt.
Weiland finished with a team-high 27 points. Smith trailed him with 16, and Akers rounded out Chico’s trio of double-digit scorers with 10.
“There were a lot of nerves with us being here for the first time. We barely made it into playoffs, and we were the underdogs, but we showed we can play and compete with anybody,” Weiland said. “The team stepped up big everywhere. [Tom Bean] is good, and [Sullivan] is a talented player, but everyone did their job — offense, defense, everywhere.”
Added Smith: “Everyone thought we were going to lose coming in here. They thought it was just the small town of Chico and we had no chance. But look what we did — we came in here and stomped them out.”
Renfro said the win was an “all-around team effort,” adding that on top of the scoring output by Weiland, Smith and Akers, he though Cuevas and Luis Amador gave the Dragons an extra edge.
“Luis and Landon were great for us defensively,” Renfro said. “The stuff they do doesn’t always show up in the box score, but we don’t win the game without them.”
Chico will face the winner of Maud/Yantis, which play tomorrow at Mount Vernon High School. Maud (19-11) finished first in District 16-2A, while Yantis (21-13) came in fourth in District 15-2A.
“We’ll scout them fully and see what they do, but at the end of the day, we’re trying to do what we do best,” Renfro said. “If we play our game to its highest potential, that puts our boys in a good position to be successful.”
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