Dougherty Valley secures top seed in EBAL tourney
When Dougherty Valley plays as it did Friday night against Dublin — swishing 3-pointers, slicing to the basket, burying one free throw after another — there isn't much an opponent can do.
Even when the opponent's gym is packed and rocking.
Even when the opponent has quite a bit on the line.
Even when one of Dougherty Valley's best players had four points at halftime and another had zero.
Leading by two at the break, the Bay Area News Group's top-ranked team stretched the margin to double digits by the start of the fourth quarter and went on to secure the No. 1 seed in next week's East Bay Athletic League tournament with an 80-65 victory. What worked?
“We shared the ball,” said Dougherty Valley coach Mike Hansen, whose program had lost its previous 10 games against Dublin. “That makes us tough to guard. It doesn't sit in one guy's hands.”
Ryan Beasley was spectacular for the winning side, finishing with 29 points and nine rebounds. The USF-bound senior was 10 for 10 from the foul line.
Connor Sevilla, who had four points at halftime, erupted with three 3-pointers during a third-quarter surge. He finished with 24 points and was 7 of 7 from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter.
“That's the MVP right there,” Beasley said.
Blake Hudson, who didn't have a point through two quarters, scored eight in the second half. He helped ignite the third-quarter run with a breakaway dunk that began when Landon Edmond made a block at the other end.
With Hudson and Sevilla quiet offensively in the first half, Dougherty Valley (23-3, 8-1) got help from Chris Fallgren and Aadi Malali. Both had two 3-pointers before halftime.
“Those two role guys really got the scoring going,” Hansen said. “Then everyone settled down and we could get to our second and third guy. Then Ryan got going and then Connor gets going. It's tough.”
Dublin (18-8, 7-2) would have captured the top seed in the league tournament had it won. Instead, the Gaels dropped to the No. 3 seed because of a head-to-head loss to De La Salle, which was seeded second.
The No. 3 seed gets started in the quarterfinals, while the top two seeds received byes until the semifinals.
“We knew we had to come out and get this one seed,” Beasley said. “It means a lot. But we're not going to yell. We're going for EBAL, too.”
Dublin coach Tom Costello said his postgame message to his team was no different from other games.
Jalen Stokes had 16 points and Courtney Anderson Jr. finished with 15 points to lead seventh-ranked Dublin, which also got 12 points from Donovan Cooks.
“We're going to wake up, we're going to get to work, we're going to hit the weights, we're going to practice and we're going to play a good team,” Costello said. “It doesn't change.” The first half was tight. Dougherty Valley made five baskets in the opening quarter — four of them from 3-point range — and led 14-13 after eight minutes.
Dublin got hot early in the second quarter, going on an 8-0 run to grab a 21-16 lead. But 11 points from Beasley in the period gave Dougherty Valley a 33-31 advantage at the break.
Even with his team trailing, Costello was encouraged.
“I felt pretty good at halftime,” he said. “I can't fault our guys' effort. I can't fault our energy. They played hard. There were some momentum changers. We'll leave it at that.”
Dublin will play its first EBAL tournament game Wednesday. Dougherty Valley's first game in the tournament is Thursday.
If the atmosphere is anything like Friday, it will be special.
The gym was so packed that exit doors were opened so the overflow crowd could watch from outside.
“How can you not love this environment if you're a high school athlete?” Costello said. “You don't get this at prep schools. You don't get this at charter schools. This is what high school basketball is about.”