Tollison’s double-double not enough in up-and-down 52-45 loss to
Palma.
SALINAS – For the third straight league game, the Gilroy High boys basketball team bounced up and down like the ball they play with – erasing several eight-point deficits Tuesday only to fall in the end to host Palma, 52-45.
“We just had a lack of intensity in the first quarter again. We got down 8-0 again and then we fight through it,” head coach Michael Baumgartner said.”We’re in every game and we fight, but the last couple of games we make mental errors – which we can’t afford to do.”
Senior forward Erik Tollison led the Gilroy charge with 12 points and 12 rebounds, while senior teammate Danny Vadillo found his shooting touch with nine points.
“The last three games have been exactly the same,” said Baumgartner, whose squad is 0-3 in league. “We start slow, get back in it, and then falter in the end.”
After falling behind 8-0 early in the first quarter, Gilroy – which never trailed by double digits throughout the game – fought back and trailed by only four at the break, 25-21.
The Mustangs were strong in the third quarter as well – cutting the gap to one heading into the final period.
“They’re a team we could be very, very successful against,” said Baumgartner of Palma (2-1 in T-CAL). “We held them to 52 points. What we want on defense has been there. We just haven’t been able to execute our offense.”
Gilroy will get another shot at its first T-CAL win with a Jan. 30 road game against North Salinas on deck at 7 p.m.
“They are struggling right now,” said Baumgartner of North Salinas. “They are very, very athletic, but undisciplined.
“If we go in and play our game and minimize our mental errors, we can be very successful.”
