Timely shots, opportunistic defense carry Flames over Tigers
Monica Valenzuela had a good reason to clinch her fists and pump her arms down to her waist.
The Lodi High girls basketball player, a senior forward, canned two 3-pointers toward the end of the first quarter of Tuesday’s Tri-City Athletic League and cross-town game against Tokay. That included hitting an uncontested shot at the buzzer.
Valenzuela’s shots behind the arc, plus the fact that she was one of six seniors who were playing their last regularseason game at The Inferno, seemed to have given the Flames momentum. That led to big points for the 5-foot-10 Valenzuela, as the Flames posted a 59-32 victory over the Tigers on Lodi’s Senior Night.
Tuesday’s game was the complete opposite of the first meeting between the two rivals on Jan. 26 at The Jungle. The Flames led most of that game, but had to hold off many Tiger rallies in the final 16 minutes to escape with a 59-55 victory.
The win puts Lodi alone in second place in the TCAL at 6-2, and 19-7 overall. Tokay finishes its season with a 1-7 mark in league, 7-17.
Valenzuela finished with 20 points that included 10 points in the first quarter and 14 in the first half. Most of her shots were taken coming off Tiger turnovers, thanks to the Flames’ half-court defense. Other times Valenzuela had the ball was inside the paint, coming off her own missed shot or a teammates’ missed offensive opportunity.
“We had a lot of energy,” Valenzuela said.
The first quarter ended with Lodi leading 20-9. Halfway through the quarter, Lodi clung onto an 8-6 lead that was quickly expanded by Valenzuela and forward Alexa Brand, who scored six of her eight points in the first quarter and finished with 12 points.
“The shots were huge,” said Lodi coach Brandon Shea of his team’s buckets.
Added Tokay coach Jennifer Bauer, “It was kind of a momentum killer.”
Tokay started runs in the second quarter in hopes of cutting down the Flames’ lead. That included five of the team’s nine
points from junior center Anessa Spradely, who made attempts to record baskets inside but the Flames’ defense forced her and another post player in Katie Price to go outside the paint. “She’s tough,” said Shea of Spradley. Lodi’s defense continued to screen out underneath the basket for rebounds. The Flames finished with 39 rebounds. Forward Brooke Alberle had seven boards, and Valenzuela and center Aubrey Andrews had five each.
“We couldn’t put enough runs together,” Bauer said.
Shea added, “Overall, I think we were playing really well defensively.”
By halftime, the Flames’ dominance over the Tigers was underway with a 34-15 lead.
“We were hitting our shots,” Shea said. “The girls didn’t want to lose. They didn’t want to keep it close like the last time.”
Lodi continued its course in scoring with 15 points in the third quarter, with one-third coming from Valenzuela who had five, for a 49-26 advantage entering the final quarter.
Bauer noted, “They (Lodi) made their shots, all three quarters. We just couldn’t get quite back in it.”
Now with the regular season in the rear view mirror, Shea and Lodi await for the SacJoaquin Section to release its playoff brackets on Thursday. Through the High School Sports Network Website — nfhsnetwork.com/associations/cifsjs — the brackets are scheduled to be released Thursday at 4:30 p.m. Then brackets would then be listed on the section’s Website at cifsjs.org. The regular season finale, for Lodi, was treated as a tune-up for what it will face when the playoffs begin next week.
“We’re trying to get ready for the playoffs,” Valenzuela said. “This is a good way to start.”
Behind Valenzuela and Brand in scoring for the Flames were guard Zoe Faulkner with seven points, forward Alexis Acosta five, forward Ellie Van Tassel and guard Alaina Gravenkamp four each, Aberle three, Andrews two and guards Marissa Fabian and Aiyana Evans one each.
The Tigers’ scorers behind Spradley were Price with seven points, guards Destiny Lopez and Sydney Giovannoni five each and guard Yuka Nakagomi two.