67-52 home win over Clear Lake secures no worse than co-championship for Mustangs
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MIDDLETOWN >> Middletown jumped to a 25-11 lead after one quarter and beat Clear Lake 67-52 on Wednesday night in Middletown to clinch no worse than a share of the North Central League I varsity boys basketball championship.
Middletown finished 12-2 in league play and is now 20-6 overall.
The Mustangs will now await the outcome of Thursday’s game between Upper Lake (4-9) and St. Helena (11-2) in St. Helena to find out if they’ll enter next week’s North Coast Section playoffs as the undisputed league champion or as co-champions. If St. Helena beats Upper Lake to earn a co-championship, Middletown will travel to St. Helena on Friday night for a special playoff game that is used for section playoff seeding purposes. The Friday game, if held, has no bearing on the outcome of the league race, which ends Thursday.
The North Coast Section will announce playoff pairings in all divisions Sunday.
“We kept our heads down and stuck to the gameplan,” Middletown head coach Jake Diehl said. “Beyond proud of this team as a whole. Championship teams are special, and this squad had constantly proven themselves by overcoming adversity time and time again.”
Bodhi Moore’ s 26 points led the Mustangs while Jon Hawkins was right behind him with 24, including four dunks. Hawkins also pulled down a team-best 10 rebounds for a double-double.
“I’m excited that we get to keep competing,” Diehl said with a look ahead to the playoffs.
Sawyer Smith’s 19 points paced the Cardinals (7-7, 12-13) while Zane McAuley added 13 in the team’s league and regular-season finale.
“Middletown jumped out to an early lead in the first half,” Clear Lake head coach Mark Cory said. “We played much better in the second half. Sawyer shot the ball well tonight.”
Added Cory, “The boys played hard and competed to the end. I am proud of my team, and we had a good season.”
Middletown also won the junior varsity game, 79-61.
“The fellas finished strong like I knew they would,” Middletown head coach Andy Brown said of the Mustangs’ league and season finale. “A win against Clear Lake is always a good way to end the season. We were rough around the edges but capitalized when we needed to.”
John Finney’s 22 points led a balanced Middletown attack. Leland Pike added 15 points, including four 3-pointers, Valentin Jimenez had 13 points and 14 rebounds, and Kolton Costlow had 12 points.
Ayden Moreno’s 22 points powered the Cardinals, who end up 6-8 in league play. Gael Moreno added 11 points, Joey Portlock had nine and Nolan Buffalo eight.
“It was a tough way to end the season,” Clear Lake head coach Shady Cerezo said. “We were missing two players due to illness. We got into foul trouble early in the game and with seven players suited up, we had an uphill battle.
“Proud of my guys for the work they’ve put in,” Cerezo added. “I felt that they’ve gotten better throughout the season as basketball players and as young men. It’s been a pleasure to watch them grow.”
