Paul Larrea title goes to Crusaders, 63-41; Upper Lake beats Willits for third place
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LAKEPORT >> St. Bernard’s of Eureka claimed the Paul Larrea Tournament title for junior varsity boys basketball teams with a 63-41 win over host Clear Lake on Saturday afternoon in Lakeport.
“We ran into a buzzsaw,” Clear Lake head coach Shady Cerezo said. “St. Bernard’s couldn’t miss from the start of the game.”
The Crusaders outscored the Cardinals 23-8 in the first quarter and never looked back. While Clear Lake’s defense limited St. Bernard’s to just eight points in the second quarter, the Cardinals couldn’t take advantage.
“We buckled down on defense in the second quarter, but the problem was that we couldn’t hit the ocean if we fell out of a boat,” Cerezo said of the solitary free throw Clear Lake scored in the period.
St. Bernard’s took a 31-9 lead into halftime.
“We could have just quit and let them run us out of the gym, but we kept battling in the second half,” Cerezo said.
Noah Cleaver led the Cardinals with 10 points while Ayden Moreno had eight.
Upper Lake 54, Willits 30
Upper Lake secured third place with a victory over Willits. Shaun Way led a balanced Cougars attack with 15 points while All-Tournament selections TJ Malicay and Antario Wyman finished with 14.
“The guys just played all out defensively the whole tournament,” Upper Lake head coach Lupeli Faleagafulu said. “TJ and Antario set the tone with pressure at half-court, and that just seemed to start our momentum defensively.”
Added Faleagafulu, “Shaun had another solid game and he’s definitely getting comfortable being out big guy in the paint.”
The Cougars are off until Jan. 7 when they travel to Cloverdale for a North Central League I game.
