Despite being tied at the half, Mustangs lose 61-43
Gilroy – The first half had all the intensity of a playoff game. The second half was all OJ and Palma.
And in the end, the Chieftains drew first blood as they ran away from Gilroy for a 61-43 win in the Tri-County Athletic League opener for both schools at packed Bob Hagen Memorial Gym.
Orlando Johnson was as good as advertised with 28 points and 15 rebounds, showing the skills that earned him a Division 1 scholarship to Loyola Marymount. And yet it was Palma’s second-half defense that was as instrumental as Johnson’s huge all-around game.
“Defensively, we did a great job in the second half to stop their penetration,” Chieftains’ coach Paul Alioto said. “(Kameron) Handy and (Javin) Charlot were killing us in the first half. You have to pick your poison with them. You can’t stop their inside and outside as good as they are. We decided to stop their inside and we were fortunate that Handy and Charlot weren’t hitting the outside shots in the second half.”
Handy and Charlot had 10 points apiece in a first half that was so close that neither team led by more than five points. There were seven ties, the last at 30-30 at halftime.
It was 32-32 one minute into the second half before the Mustangs’ offense virtually shut down. Palma used an 11-2 run to assume control of the game. The Chieftains (12-2) led 50-39 after three quarters. Johnson’s jumper pushed the lead to 13. Charlot’s drive and Lorenzo Dobson’s jumper with 5:08 brought GHS (9-5) within 52-43. But that was the last points the Mustangs scored.
Gilroy struggled with its shooting in the second half, making 6-of-25. And Palma controlled the boards throughout the game, finishing with a 45-34 advantage.
“We take pride in our rebounding,” Johnson said. “It leads to easy points. We knew this wasn’t as make or break game. But we knew if we got this one it would set the tone (for the TCAL season).”
Jarrell Morris had 10 points off the bench for the Chieftains. Clark Fox, who came in averaging in double figures, had just two points but his second-half rebounding and inside defense were instrumental.
“They played their butts off,” GHS assistant coach Jeremy Dirks said. “Our kids didn’t match their intensity. We have all-world talent but for some reason we don’t put it all together.”
Handy led the Mustangs with 15 points. Charlot had 12 points and three assists.
“The way you play a team like that is with constant pressure,” Charlot said. “You have to stay in their face. This is the hardest team we will face this year but we will be back. We will have another chance to play them.”
Sub-varsity: Ryan Costa had 12 points as Gilroy held off Palma 56-54 in the junior varsity game. The Chieftain freshmen scored the final eight points to edge the Mustangs 40-39.
Palma (61)-Benavente 9, Jackson 4, Bonano 8, Johnson 28, Fox 2, Ramirez 0, Morris 10, Reader 0, Vasilijevic 0. Totals 23 14-21 61.
Gilroy (43)-Siha 0, Handy 15, Martinez 0, Harrell 0, Ford 6, Charlot 12, Jensen 0, Johnson 0, Dobson 6, Jones 0, Conrad 4. Totals 16 8-12 43.
Palma 18 12 20 11 – 61
Gilroy 15 15 9 4 – 43
3-point goals: Palma, Johnson. Gilroy, Charlot 2, Handy.
