South Placer Boys Basketball roundup: Lions defeat Capitals to remain third in SMAL, Wildcats edge out win over Golden Eagles

Going into Tuesday's contest at Whitney High, the Wildcats and the Del Oro Golden Eagles were 1-1 against each other on the season. Del Oro High beat the Wildcats in the Les Curry Tournament final on Dec. 17 while Whitney High beat the Golden Eagles in overtime in Loomis on Jan. 11. In Tuesday's rubber match, the Wildcats sneaked out a 64-62 win to progress to 3-4 in the Sierra Foothill League. Despite totaling 22 turnovers, the Wildcats had two huge scoring runs during the game; an 13-4 run to close out the first half and an 11-2 run to start the fourth quarter. "I think the biggest thing is that we responded to adversity, which is something that we haven't been able to find a way to come back from mistakes we make on our own lately," Wildcats coach Nick French said. "It wasn't pretty by any means but a win in the SFL is a win in the SFL." Prior to the win, the Wildcats had lost five games in a row, the longest losing streak in French's coaching career. Senior Matt Schroeder led with 12 points while Jadon Hurtado had 11 points along with three huge steals in the fourth quarter. "I really challenged him before the game because he hasn't been playing great and he knew that," French said. "He's a senior and is one of the best kids I've ever had in terms of showing up every day and being a great person. He talks the most on the team and gives everyone some juice." Del Oro High trailed 34-25 at halftime but started the third quarter on a 9-2 run and took the lead at the end of the third. In the fourth quarter, there was a double technical foul on junior Caden Pinnick and Whitney High senior Elijah Samdahl. Pinnick would pick up a second technical with less than four minutes remaining and was ejected from the game. He finished with 19 points and seven rebounds. While the Golden Eagles lost their leading scorer and were down 59-52, they still fought back with big shots from Riley Neal, Carter Erickson, Jake Williams and Brandon Hill. "Our kids really battled and I'm proud of the resilience they showed," Golden Eagles coach Geoff Broyles said. "They did everything to fight and claw to get back in that game. I thought our kids did a great job on the boards late and executed our offense down the stretch to get some open shots. We just kind of ran out of time at the end." The Wildcats progress to 15-9 and will face Folsom High on Friday while the Golden Eagles are 16-9 and will host Oak Ridge High on Friday. Both teams are currently tied for fourth in the league, at press time. The top four teams in the Sierra Foothill League will automatically qualify for the Sac-Joaquin Section playoffs. According to the section, for Divisions I, II, III and IV, "any school not in its league's top 3 that is ranked in the Top 15 by MaxPreps in their last rankings prior to the selection process will be added to the tournament as an at-large team." Granite Bay High is also fighting for second-place in league play as it is currently 3-3. The Grizzlies picked up a huge 75-71 win over the Wildcats last Friday when junior Davis Abell led with 21 points in the contest while senior Yaqub Mir added 15 points. The Grizzlies will travel to Rocklin High on Friday before returning home on Wednesday to face the Folsom Bulldogs, who are currently the league leaders. The Rocklin Thunder are 12-13 and in last-place in the Sierra Foothill League, following a 67-39 loss to Folsom High on Wednesday night. Despite being last in league competition at 1-6, the Thunder are inches away from being second as they have lost three league games by five points or less. In their 60-58 loss to Oak Ridge High last Friday, the Thunder were led by Mark Lavrenov with 21 points and 10 rebounds while Kanyon Rice had 13 points and six rebounds. "We have a great group of kids that are continuing to work hard and compete each game," Thunder coach Steve Taylor said. "It has been disappointing to lose so many close games but our guys are always giving their best effort. The reality is that we need to improve our execution, make shots and make better decisions down the stretch on offense in order to get better results at the end of the game. On defense, we have to stay locked in, play better team defense, and rebound the ball better to hold teams to one shot at the end of a game." Rocklin High will be at home against Granite Bay High on Friday and will host Del Oro High on Wednesday. Sacramento Metropolitan Athletic League In the first affair between Valley Christian Academy and Sacramento Adventist Academy on Jan. 5, the Capitals got the upper hand, erasing a 10-point deficit to win 90-88. On Jan. 26, the Lions evened the season series at 1-1 and handed the Capitals their second league loss with a 92-87 victory in overtime. The Lions were led by junior Chase Clary, who finished with 19 points and 10 rebounds, while Jordan Hurley poured in 18 points. The game was back and forth with Valley Christian Academy leading 44-35 at halftime before the Capitals won the third quarter 26-15. The Capitals were led by seniors Ady Serna and Braeden Beaman, who scored 33 and 31 points, respectively. One area that the Lions struggled was at the free throw line as they only made 17 out of 33 shots. "Right now, there is a little bit of a mental block and it's between our ears because we do practice a ton and work on form but we just need the guys to step up and drain them," Lions coach Brad Gunter Jr. said. "It's not the pressure free throws we're missing, it's those in the first three quarters that might not be a big deal, but my guys are putting pressure on themselves and we have to figure that out down the stretch." Defensively, the Lions forced 31 Capitals turnovers and did a solid job rebounding as five players had at least six rebounds. "Tonight was a gut check because we've had a good record and have beat really good teams but it has been a month and a half," Gunter said. "To get the monkey off our back and beat a really good team that beat us at home previously, I think will help mentally as we go down the stretch." The Lions' second-leading scorer, Chris Donkor, fouled out with 4:50 remaining in regulation but a number of other players stepped up such as Malachi Urena, who totaled 11 points and seven rebounds, along with juniors Rod Williams and Matthew Larson, who both scored nine points. Valley Christian Academy is currently third in the Sacramento Metropolitan Athletic League and will travel to Cristo Rey on Thursday, after press time, before returning home on Saturday against Sacramento Country Day. The Lions are currently second in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division VI rankings. Western Sierra Collegiate Academy is leading the league with an undefeated record of 9-0, following a 76-36 winover Cristo Rey on Tuesday night. The Wolves have played fantastic defense, only allowing 30.9 points per game on average in league competition. "I contribute our success on the defensive end to our defensive system as well as the boys' focus and intensity on a daily basis," Wolves coach Andre Jones said. "We communicate at a championship level and that was one of our focuses coming into the year. We also have multiple defensive schemes making it very hard for teams to prepare for us." Offensively, the Wolves have continued to be led by senior Mathes Klein with 13.9 points per game while Chase Delaloye is scoring 11.6 points per game. The Wolves will travel to Sacramento Adventist Academy on Thursday, after press time, and will face Buckingham Charter at home on Saturday. If the Wolves beat the Capitals, they will lock up the league title. "It is extremely exciting to be in a position to win another league title," Jones said. "We need to remain focused for these next few games of the league and take it one game at a time. The job is far from finished." Not only are the Wolves solid on the court but they also have done a great job in the classroom with an overall team grade point average of around 4.2, according to Jones. Foothill Valley League The West Park Panthers are third in the Foothill Valley League at 4-2, following a 67-64 win over Oakmont High on Friday night. In their prior game against Lincoln High on Jan. 25, the Panthers had five players out, including junior Andre Anderson and freshman Jaden Jackson. Junior Brooklyn Galaviz led in scoring with 15 points. The Panthers struggled with free throw shooting and were eight for 15 from the stripe. "We just have to put the ball into the hole as it allows us to set our defense and do some different things," Panthers coach John Hunter said. "You counter that with Lincoln, who shoots well in this building, and they are well-coached. It made for a tough night, especially when we aren't hitting shots." The Panthers played Nevada Union High on Wednesday and will face Ponderosa High at home on Friday night. "This league is a meat grinder, so there are no easy nights," Hunter said. "You have to be prepared to compete every night and I think we're figuring that out. We're a second-year varsity program but the guys are responding and growing." Oakmont High has yet to win a league game at 0-7, despite narrowly losing to the Panthers and a 52-50 loss to the Nevada Union Miners on Jan. 19. The Vikings continue to be led by junior Kundai Mkorombindo with 12.8 points per game. They will travel to Lincoln High on Friday before playing the Miners at home on Wednesday. Roseville High The Tigers have yet to win a game in the Capital Valley Conference at 0-7, following a 94-40 loss to Inderkum High last Friday night. Roseville High has been led by senior Ethan Okelberry with 14.5 points per game. Their closest game in league was a 78-77 loss to the Antelope Titans on Jan. 19. Roseville High faces Yuba City High at home on Friday before traveling to face the Titans on Tuesday. John Adams Academy The Patriots are 1-4 in the Northern Pacific Athletic Conference, following a 87-66 loss to Leroy Greene Academy on Tuesday night. John Adams Academy, 11-12 overall, has been struggling defensively as of late, giving up an average of 82 points per game in the last five contests. Offensively, the Patriots continue to be led by senior John Paul Byers with 25.3 points per game. The Patriots will face Trinity Prep at home on Thursday, after press time, before traveling to Sacramento Adventist Academy for a non-league contest on Monday.