Lower Lake, Middletown, Kelseyville drop games in tournament action; Upper Lake JVs win
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CALISTOGA >> Zane McAuley poured in 27 points and Jesse Hayes added 17 as the Clear Lake High School varsity boys basketball team reached the championship game of the Gene Duffy Holiday Classic with a 74-36 win over Summerfield Waldorf of Santa Rosa on Friday night in Calistoga.
Clear Lake’s opponent in the finals, which tip off at 3 p.m. Saturday, is a familiar one, the St. Helena Saints.
“It’s the second time we face them in five days,” Clear Lake head coach Mark Cory said. “It will be a great challenge for us.”
St. Helena beat Clear Lake 61-43 on Tuesday in St. Helena, the North Central League I opener for both teams.
Clear Lake raced ahead of Summerfield Waldorf early and continued to add to its lead throughout the night.
“We came out with good energy and took control of the game from the jump,” Cory said.
In other boys basketball action Friday:
Anderson Valley 56, Lower Lake 51
At Cloverdale, down by 12 points after three quarters, the Lower Lake Trojans rallied to briefly take the lead against Anderson Valley in the fourth quarter before falling to the Panthers in the consolation semifinals of the John McMillan Holiday Invitational at Cloverdale High School.
“Our team then woke up and we played a full-court denial defense, which resulted in us closing the gap in scoring,” Lower Lake head coach Anthony Farrington said.
“I am proud of how our players rallied back to close the gap and began playing better defense,” Farrington added. “I am starting to see them play with some heart and go all in. Our team continues to get compliments from other coaches on how they are beginning to see positive changes in the team, and that they are playing more structured and disciplined ball.”
Brody Shields scored 12 points and Hector Murillo added 11 to lead the Trojans (1-6), who wrap up tournament play Saturday against Orland in the seventh-place game at 9 a.m. Raijhier McKneeley, Tucker Benson and Ivan DeLeon added four points apiece.
Maria Carrillo 70, Middletown 40
At Petaluma, Maria Carrillo opened up an 18-3 lead after one quarter, withstood an 18-6 second quarter by Middletown, and went on to beat the Mustangs in the winner’s semifinal round of the second annual Gary von Raesfeld Memorial Tournament at St. Vincent High School.
Maria Carrillo will play Redwood Christian on Saturday in the championship game at 6 p.m. while Middletown (5-2) draws tournament host St. Vincent in the third-place game at 4:30 p.m.
“We only played a well-round game for the second quarter,” Middletown head coach Jake Diehl said. “They were bigger and faster and just outplayed us the entire second.”
Jon Hawkins finished with 11 points and Harrison Brown had 10 for Middletown. Bodhi Moore added nine points and Anthony Bowerman had eight. Brown hit three 3-pointers.
San Rafael 74, Kelseyville 52
At Healdsburg, a 22-8 first quarter by San Rafael put the Kelseyville Knights in a deep hole early, one they spent the rest of the game trying to climb out of in the winner’s semifinal round of the 75th annual Redwood Empire Invitational Basketball Tournament.
Kelseyville plays Healdsburg in the third-place game Saturday at 12:30 p.m.
“We got as close as 10 points, but every time we would answer, they would answer right back,” Kelseyville head coach Oscar Lopez said of the Bulldogs (9-2).
On the team’s poor play in the first quarter, Lopez said, “We fell asleep at the wheel defensively. We left one of their guys open and he let it fly.”
That San Rafael player, Giovanni Brovelli, scored 11 points, including three 3-pointers, in the first quarter.
“Once we found our groove, we showed we could play with them,” Lopez said of the final three quarters. “It was a little bit of an eye-opening game for us. We need to play better defense if we’re going to beat these kinds of teams.”
Brock Barrick’s 11 points led the Knights (3-3) and Ryder Leary added 10. Kyle Watkins and Gene Holdenried each added eight points while Tyler Bryant had seven and Sebastian Chavez six.
Upper Lake JV 46, Orland JV 26
At Maxwell, Upper Lake bounced back from an opening-round loss to Colusa on Thursday to beat Orland in the consolation semifinals of the Maxwell JV Tournament.
TJ Malicay’s 14 points powered Upper Lake (5-4) while Shaun Way, Brody Blancas, Antario Wyman and Slade Colthrap had six apiece.
“I thought the ball movement was a big improvement from our previous game,” Upper Lake head coach Lupeli Faleagafulu said. “Guys were patient and not trying to force the opportunity when it wasn’t there.”
Upper Lake plays Hamilton in the consolation championship game Saturday at 10:30 a.m.
