No hiding the leaders
Foothill hoops midseason report: Clear frontrunners emerge, but everything else is up in the air
Everyone knows who has the targets on their backs.
It’s the same teams that did at the start of the Foothill League basketball season — the Hart boys and Valencia girls. Both are defending league champions and both stampeded through the first half of the league season.
But while those teams will try to continue to assert their dominance, the
teams below them are all shuffling around and trying to at least get into position for those coveted automatic playoff bids given to the top three finishers in league.
Boys Somehow, the two-time defending Foothill champion Hart Indians (14-7 overall, 5-0 Foothill League) entered league competition quietly this season, with a modest 8-7 record at the time.
But the senior-laden Hart quickly started racking up
league wins thanks to a suffocating man-to-man defense that has held Foothill opponents to an average of 46.8 points per game.
“They all played a lot last year as juniors so we’re seeing the dividends of that. Also, we had a pretty tough (preleague) and I think I knew we were a little better than our record was showing,” said Hart head coach Tom Kelly. “So we just wanted to get out and play.”
The Indians also score in a variety of ways, but senior guard Chad Donohoe has been the go-to player, leading the team in scoring in all five Foothill games and putting up an average of 18.6 points per contest during that stretch.
Though players like Ryan Kaneshiro and Cameron Fuller have played big roles, too, on both ends of the court, Donohoe has emerged as the leader and is a frontrunner for the league Player of the Year honor.
After Hart, everyone is bunched up in the standings. Though Golden Valley (14-8, 3-2) stands alone in second place, it’s only one game ahead of West Ranch (12-9, 2-3), Canyon (12-11, 2-3) and Valencia (8-13, 2-3).
Golden Valley is not only trying to end a two-game losing streak, but also trying to recover from an incident that involved a player allegedly involved in a fight in the bleachers after Tuesday’s game against West Ranch.
“I’m kind of counting on the fact that (the players) are pretty resilient and they just want to get back on the court and play,” said Golden Valley head coach Larry Keys.
West Ranch, Canyon and Valencia are all threats for different reasons. West Ranch, led by Player of the Year candidate Austin Galuppo, would be tied with Golden Valley for second place were it not for the use of an ineligible player leading to a forfeited game two weeks ago.
Valencia is gaining momentum since the varsity debut of 6-foot-7-inch forward Chibuzo Ikonte in last week’s win over Canyon. Meanwhile, Canyon
has found its rhythm with two wins in a row after an 0-3 start in league.
The bottom line is that there’s still a lot to be decided.
Girls Valencia (16-4, 5-0) has made it look easy so far, winning its five league games by an average of 31 points.
This team is simply the deepest and most talented in town. Kayla Konrad can do everything for the Vikings, Sabrina Thompson can score and run the offense, while Kenadee Honaker, Ashlee Ane and Jade Jordan also significantly contribute in multiple ways.
Canyon (16-4, 4-1) continues to show why its a perennial power, with sophomore guard Talia Taufaasau quickly becoming one the best young players in the league. She’s established a good combination with sophomore power forward Rachel Bowers, who continues to block shots and churn out double-doubles.
Hart (11-10, 3-2) has also remained in the mix despite all the roster turnover this season. A big reason for that has been the strong allaround play of junior guard Nicole Benz.
Saugus (14-9, 1-4), West Ranch (11-9, 1-4) and Golden Valley (8-13, 1-4) are all fighting to stay in the chase.