Palo Alto snatches rivalry win
The rivals went into Friday night's game with opposite records. Palo Alto was 6-1 in league, Gunn 1-6.
Mismatch? Well, not exactly. When crosstown rivals meet, most anything can happen.
Gunn, energized by an enthusiastic home rooting section, looked to have the game in hand with a 15-point lead after three quarters. But Palo Alto reversed course with the game on the line, outscoring Gunn 23-4 over the final eight minutes to snatch away a 51-47 victory.
“It was certainly one of the more exciting wins I've ever been a part of, at any level,” Palo Alto coach Jeff LaMere said. “Gunn had all the momentum. They were playing a great game. We talked about making stops and just chipping away, chipping away.”
Sophomore Jorell Clark took care of the offensive side for the Vikings (16-4, 7-1) in the comeback. He scored all 11 of Palo Alto's points in the third quarter and added nine more in the fourth.
“We really wanted to win this game, it was very important to us,” said Clark, who finished with a game-high 24 points. “We didn't want to let our fans down.”
Gunn (12-7, 1-7) has now lost games by one, three and four points in the Santa Clara Valley Athletic League's De Anza division.
“I told the kids they played great,” Gunn coach Brandynn Williams said. “If we play like this we will win the majority of our games. Hopefully, with this loss, we can bounce back and I believe we have the fortitude to do that.”
— Glenn Reeves
NO. 11 MOREAU CATHOLIC 71,
JAMES LOGAN 59 >> Still riding a wave of momentum after beating Folsom in the Crush in the Valley showcase last Saturday at Contra Costa College, Kellen Hampton had 26 points and 13 rebounds to lead Moreau Catholic (14-5, 8-0) to its second win over James Logan (12-8, 6-3) in Mission Valley Athletic League play this season.
NO. 10 PINOLE VALLEY 79, VALLEJO 54 >> Pinole Valley bounced back from a narrow loss to Salesian on Tuesday with a win over visiting Vallejo in TriCounty Athletic League Rock Division play. Jordy McKenzie scored 19 points and Kaleb Allison had 16 points for Pinole Valley, which improved 20-4, 6-2. Vallejo slipped to 11-10, 4-3.
Girls basketball
NO. 4 SALESIAN 64, ST. MARY'S-BERKELEY 36 >> Makiah Asidanya scored 23 points and Sofia Fidelus added 12 points in Salesian's win at St. Mary's in a TCAL Rock Division game. Salesian improved to 19-4, 8-0. St. Mary's dropped to 10-12, 3-5.
NO. 5 OAKLAND TECH 58, CASTLEMONT 8 >> Oakland Tech, playing at home, rolled past Castlemont in an OAL game. Ten out of 12 players scored for Tech. Jhai Johnson led Tech with eight points and Mari Somvichian and Nia Hunter had seven points apiece. Tech improved to 17-5, 5-0. Castlemont fell to 9-12, 2-3.