Knights use 31-9 fourth quarter to rally past Clear Lake Cardinals
Lake County Sports on Facebook
LAKEPORT >> Kyle Watkins scored his 1,000th career point late in the first quarter, part of a 17-point night by the Kelseyville High School senior, but it was the Knights’ 31-9 fourth quarter that carried the team to a 70-53 victory over the Clear Lake Cardinals in North Central League I varsity boys basketball action Friday night in Lakeport.
Clear Lake (6-6 league, 11-12 overall) went to the fourth quarter with a 44-39 lead against its archrival, the possibility of an upset looming against a Kelseyville team that needed a win to stay in the thick of the league race, which has just a week left.
“I pretty much let them know we’re the big dogs,” Kelseyville head coach Oscar Lopez said when asked what he told his players between the end of the third quarter and the start of the fourth.
While Watkins and Jayden Teabo, who scored a career-best 14 points, carried the Knights (10-2, 15-9) in the first half, pretty much every Kelseyville player answered the call down the stretch.
- Ryder Leary scored 10 of his 13 points in the fourth quarter.
- Tyler Bryant had five of his nine.
- Gene Holdenried had six of his seven.
- Brock Barrick had all of his six.
“Everybody was in on it,” Lopez said of the team’s 31-point explosion. “When it rains, it pours.”
“We played well for three quarters and slowed them down,” Clear Lake head coach Mark Cory said. “Kelseyville caught fire in the fourth and we went cold.”
The game was tied 12-12 after one quarter. Clear Lake took a 28-27 lead into the half. Nearly all of Kelseyville offense early on came from either Teabo or Watkins, who scored career points 999 and 1,000 on a layup with 2:04 remaining, though the Knights, because of the flow of the game, didn’t take a timeout to acknowledge the milestone until a bit later in the quarter.
“Teabo had eight (points) in the second quarter,” Lopez said. “The kid was finishing everything inside.”
Watkins, who was elevated to the varsity midway through his freshman season, is the eighth Kelseyville boy to reach 1,000 points. He finished the game with 1,011 and still has at least two more games to play, plus any North Coast Section playoff games.
“What a better way to score your 1,000th point than against your rival,” Lopez said of Clear Lake.
AJ Bruch’s 13 points paced the Cardinals while Zane McAuley and Jesse Hayes added 12 and 10, respectively.
“I’m proud of my team for playing with lots of energy and fight tonight,” Cory said.
Kelseyville can do no worse than a tie for the league title by winning its final two league games – Tuesday at home against Cloverdale (4-8) and Thursday at home against Fort Bragg (4-8).
“One game at a time,” Lopez said of his remaining league games.
Kelseyville, Middletown and St. Helena all take 10-2 records into next week. A year ago it was Kelseyville and St. Helena tying for first place.
Clear Lake hits the road Tuesday to play Lower Lake.
JV game
Kelseyville beat Clear Lake in the junior varsity game 72-56 behind 28 points for Nick Arredondo, who made six 3-pointers.
The Knights’ win combined with Middletown lost to St. Helena on Friday gives Kelseyville (12-0, 16-7) the undisputed league title.
Gordon Astrup finished with 18 points for Kelseyville and Joey Watson nine.
The Cardinals (5-7) had four players score in double figures – 12 each by Ayden Moreno and Gael Moreno, 11 from Joey Portlock and 10 by Nolan Buffalo.
“We came out battling,” Clear Lake head coach Shady Cerezo said. “I’m proud of my guys for playing hard. It’s a way better game than the last time we played them.”
