No matter how Gilroy’s players and coaches look at it, Tuesday’s
home-opening 56-52 defeat to the Oakland Tech Bulldogs was a
disappointment.
No matter how Gilroy’s players and coaches look at it, Tuesday’s home-opening 56-52 defeat to the Oakland Tech Bulldogs was a disappointment.
Even if they were to turn it over – which is exactly what the Mustangs did.
“The turnovers had to be in the twenties again,” GHS Coach Bud Ogden said after the game. “The pace of the game was such that we were forced into making a lot of bad decisions.”
Trailing by two points at halftime, the Mustangs entered the third quarter lethargic, letting the Bulldogs go on a 9-point run to take a 40-29 advantage.
Gilroy would cut the lead to one, 48-47, with just minutes to play, but some timely Oakland Tech free-throws and missed opportunities by the Mustangs sealed the game.
Jason Conrad had 17 points to lead Gilroy in scoring, with most of his baskets coming on put-backs and transition dunks. The senior captain said his team was better than the way it played, and should have won by a comfortable 10- to 15-point margin.
“We just turned the ball over too much,” Conrad said. “We didn’t execute our plays very well.”
The two squads did play an even first half despite using drastically different styles. The Bulldogs pressed man-to-man the length of the court while the Mustangs sat back in a 2-3 zone.
Giving up almost nothing in the paint, Gilroy forced its opponents to swing the ball around the perimeter and hit outside shots, which the Bulldogs were able to do fairly consistently. On the opposite end, Gilroy used its superior height to score on the inside, with Conrad and Lorenzo Dobson (11 points) having their way against the shorter Bulldogs.
In the second half, the quick tempo of the game – manufactured by Oakland Tech’s press – was not in Gilroy’s favor. Despite a lack of traps by the Bulldogs, Gilroy acted hurried when bringing the ball up the floor, and failed to run productive plays in the half court when possessions mattered most.
At the end of the third quarter, Ogden pulled all five of his starters off the floor to send a message to his team. Back on the court to start the fourth, the Mustangs responded by going on a 11-3 run with Conrad posterizing an Oakland Tech player on a dunk after sealing off the post. He followed that play with another dunk on a Bulldog player, this time from an alley-oop thrown off the backboard by Gilroy guard Derek Jensen (12 points).
The Mustangs switched from zone to man-to-man in the final period, helping put pressure on a Bulldogs squad clinging to a slim lead.
“In spurts we played very, very well,” Ogden said. “Our defense came around. I think we should have got out of the zone a little bit sooner … They tried to protect their lead a little bit and it gave us a chance to get back in it. ”
But in the end, there just wasn’t enough time.
The Mustangs will have a week to figure things out as the team’s next game will be Tuesday, Dec. 11, at home against San Lorenzo Valley.
The loss dropped Gilroy to 3-2 in preseason play while the Bulldogs are now 4-2.
JV Note:
The junior varsity Mustangs were able to defeat Oakland Tech 61-50 Tuesday.
Max Fisher led Gilroy with 13 points and 9 rebounds while Raul Quintanar and Bryan Sanchez both pitched in 12 points apiece. Michael Hartman added 8 points.
The team is now 4-1 on the season.
