Gilroy
– It wasn’t the prettiest of victories but the Gilroy High boys’
basketball team gained a measure of revenge against rival Live Oak
last night, beating the visiting Acorns 48-40 on Senior Night.
Gilroy – It wasn’t the prettiest of victories but the Gilroy High boys’ basketball team gained a measure of revenge against rival Live Oak last night, beating the visiting Acorns 48-40 on Senior Night.
So it seemed appropriate that a senior, Vince Mitre, who led his team with 16 points and made several key plays both to stake his team to an early lead and to hold off LO’s late rally. For Mitre, the thrill of beating the Acorns, especially under the circumstances, was nearly overwhelming. It was LO’s victory over the Mustangs inn the first meeting between the two teams that helped spur GHS on its recent winning streak.
“We wanted justice,” Mitre said, searching for words to describe his elation. “This is a huge one for the seniors. We really wanted to beat (Live Oak).”
Since the first loss to LO, GHS hasn’t lost. Last night’s win was the Mustangs’ fifth straight and boosted them to 5-4 in league play (16-10 overall).
Not that it was easy. Despite fashioning a 15-point halftime lead, and nursing a double-digit lead for most of the second half, GHS saw LO rally late to within three points of the lead. But the Mustangs kept their composure in the dwindling moments to hold on for the win.
For GHS coach Bud Ogden, last night’s victory was exactly the type of triumph he envisioned during a tough non-league schedule that tested the Mustangs’ will.
“We played a tough schedule and our record probably could have been different if it hadn’t been so tough but I wanted to play that tough schedule for nights exactly for games like this,” Ogden said. “We played tough and didn’t crumble when it got close down the stretch. A couple of months ago, I’m not sure I could have said that.”
Early on, GHS rode the emotion of its final regular season home game, and the pre-game introduction of its eight seniors, to a big lead. Moving the ball crisply and using its inside-outside game to perfection, the Mustangs sprinted to a 16-9 lead after one quarter and led 30-15 at the half.
In the first quarter, Mitre hit back-to-back 3-pointers at the end of an 8-0 GHS run that set the tone. Then, Mitre hit another 3-pointer and added a bucket to start the second quarter, boosting the Mustang lead into double digits.
Meanwhile, the post trio of seniors Mark Kennedy, Adam Moon and Steven Good added inside buckets to keep the Acorn defense honest. Senior guard Calvin Kretz added seven first-half points to the cause.
In the second half, LO induced the Mustangs into early foul trouble and earned the bonus midway through the third quarter. But the Acorns’ miserable foul shooting (3-of-11 during one stretch) kept GHS in command at 34-22 after three quarters of play.
LO finally got on track behind the play of seniors Kevin Toombs, Doug Porras and Matt van Keulen in the fourth quarter, and pulled within 41-38 on van Keulen’s follow bucket with just over two minutes to play. GHS’s Kretz hit a pair of free throws to stunt the rally, but LO’s Michael Taylor hit a left-hander from the low post to make it 43-40.
That’s when Mitre made two huge plays. With 1:21 to play, the senior forward demanded the ball while posting up in the paint, got fouled on the play and hit one of two free throws to make it a two-possession game. Then, on LO’s next possession, Mitre tied up Porras on a loose ball to get the ball back inside 30 seconds to play.
LO was forced to foul after that and the Mustangs made enough of them to salt the game away.
LO fell to 12-11 overall, 3-6 in league, with the loss.
“If we’d played better in the first half, if we’d played with the same intensity in the first half as we did in the second, and we’d hit our free throws, we might have had a better chance,” LO coach Brett Paolucci said.
“Obviously, they’re the hottest team in the league right now and I like the way we came out and fought in the second half. Overall, it was a great game for both teams.”
Porras had 11 points for LO, while van Keulen added nine.
Kretz had nine points for GHS, while junior forward Jeremy Teschera added eight.
