GHS boys basketball falls apart in 60-49 home loss to Seaside;
MVC next on Jan. 13
GILROY – The Mustang hoopsters’ first-half focus earned them a four-point lead at the break in Tuesday’s home game, but Seaside’s third-quarter thunder stole the show and handed Gilroy a 60-49 loss.
“In the beginning, we had it going. We were running pretty well and then we just kinda fell apart on the transition,” said senior center Mark Kennedy, who netted six of his seven points in the second quarter. “We had a lot of good passing and our shots were falling and we did pretty well in the first quarter, the first half.”
As well as the Mustangs played through the opening two quarters, a Seaside trey to end the first half cut the gap to 28-24 and gave the visitors the momentum.
“Same thing as last game. We played very well against (Alisal) and were just down by a few (at the half) and we come out and get blitzed,” said first-year head coach Bud Ogden. “Our game plan was to make them shoot from the outside. They’re bigger, stronger and so forth. I think it worked pretty well in the first half.”
Seaside turned up the pressure to open the second half and outscored Gilroy 25-6 to take a commanding 15-point advantage into the final eight minutes.
“I think they turned it up. They’re pretty physical and they play this up-tempo type of stuff and I didn’t want to get into that and the kids slip into it,” Ogden said. “It’s kind of hard not to slip into it when they’re putting the pressure on you like that and when they can hawk the ball like they do.”
Senior guard Brandt Chacon, who had to come out in the fourth quarter after landing hard on his hip, led the Mustang offense with 11 points and senior teammate Ron Colmon added nine points, seven coming in the second half.
“We’re starting to work together as a team more. We’re starting to feel more comfortable. Our passes are starting to get to the target,” Kennedy said. “I think we just didn’t get back on defense quick enough.”
Gilroy played with the athletic Seaside ball club from the opening tip to the first-half buzzer, holding an 11-8 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Seaside forged its way ahead in the second quarter, but the Mustangs hung tough and built a seven-point edge nearing halftime. Junior guard Vince Mitre (six points) sparked the run by stealing the ball and taking it to the hoop for a lay-in. The Seaside defender helped the Gilroy cause when he slapped the back-board on the play, warranting a technical foul.
Despite Chacon missing both foul shots, the Mustangs took advantage of the extra possession as Adam Moon completed a three-point play with a lay-in and free throw. The solid sequence for Gilroy continued with a Jerrell Morales steal followed by Mitre’s bank shot above three blockers coming out at him. But Seaside’s late three-pointer was a big lift, going into the lockerroom.
“I was really, really happy to see that everybody made a contribution in the first half. Everybody got into the game. Everybody made a contribution,” Ogden said. “I’m still proud of them and we’re just going to keep on working, working, working and look forward to the next game and go into Monte Vista Christian looking for a win.”
The Mustangs, whose only two wins came against Alvarez, will travel to Monte Vista Christian for a Jan. 13 road game at 7 p.m.
“I feel that I’m getting more aggressive towards that ball and I’m touching my shot a little bit better. … and I think the game’s starting to come back to me,” Kennedy said.
JV JOUST: The 14-2 Gilroy High junior varsity boys basketball team has only one problem, and that’s playing undefeated Seaside, which defeated them for the second time this season, 42-30. Playing their seventh game in nine days, the Mustangs could not keep up, but had nine-point efforts from Andrew Alcones and Ryan Chisolm.
