OAKLAND, CA – Fans who came out for a day of girls basketball at the Bishop O’Dowd MLK Classic had plenty to cheer for, with a pair of thrilling finishes and a view of a team who simply put on a clinic. A resounding similarity was that all coaches considered it an honor to play in the event, to pay homage to Martin Luther King Jr. and to celebrate the unity that high school sports creates.
Salesian wins squeaker over Bishop O’Dowd
Salesian forced a turnover in the final seconds to escape with a 51-50 victory over Bishop O’Dowd. Angel Jackson had 14 points, eight rebounds, and three blocks for the Pride, while the Dragons received another fine performance from freshman Amaya Bonner, who gained attention of the college coaches in attendance with 19 points, eight rebounds, and three blocks.
Salesian (13-7) established an early lead and would win the game from wire-to-wire. But Bishop O’Dowd (11-8), despite falling behind by double digits on more than one occasion, slowly chipped away – reducing an eight-point first quarter deficit to five at the half and to four at the end of three.
“They’re fun to watch but not so fun to play against,” Salesian coach Steve Pezzola said about the Dragons. “We just go after it, both teams.”
With a couple of minutes to play in the game, a Jackson put-back made it 50-43 Salesian. Lexi Love and Bonner each hit a pair of free throws, and with 47 seconds left J’la Cotton split a pair. After Love missed an attempt on the other end and the Pride didn’t convert the first of a one-and-one, Kayla Hankins recovered a loose rebound and shoveled it to Jada Holland, who nailed a three-pointer with 11 seconds remaining.
Pezzola squeezed in a timeout just before a five-second violation was called, and on the ensuing inbounds Jackson drew the intentional foul with 7.6 to go. Her free throws both missed and Bonner rebounded. She pushed the ball up court, and in a wild scramble a pass from Love, under defensive duress, was just a little wide of Bonner and time expired.
“The thing that bit us in the butt were turnovers, and not finishing,” O’Dowd coach Malik McCord said. “But both teams fought. Every time we play it’s always like this.”
“He was excited of how we fought back,” Love said about her coach’s postgame comments. “He said we could have easily gave up.”
While no other players scored in double figures, both teams had multiple players contribute in a tense, back-and-forth affair in front of a fervent crowd. For the Pride, Alexsandra Alvarado tallied five points and seven assists, and Amira Brown chipped in eight points; for the Dragons, Love had nine points and Holland had seven points and three steals.
Sacramento survives Heritage
Sacramento staved off a last-ditch effort twice in a 50-48 win over Heritage. In a tough, physical game the Dragons fell behind early 10-0. With 2:25 remaining in the first and her team still not on the board, coach Michele Massari took a timeout and instructed her team to run sprints. Though an unusual measure, it seemed to spark something in the team. They bridged the end of the first and beginning of the second on a 14-4 run to tie it up.
Heritage led 27-23 at the half and scored the first bucket of the third. But then the Patriots went cold and the Dragons took advantage, not allowing another basket until 10 seconds remaining and starting the fourth with a 34-31 lead. The Dragons were up 41-33, but Heritage hung in and a Jordan Sweeney runner made it 45-42. When back-to-back fast break layups by Ryanne Walters and Heaven Samayoa-Mathis gave Sacramento a 49-42 cushion, it seemed like a certain victory. That’s when the dramatics really started.
With 7.2 seconds left, Sweeney converted a four-point play, hitting a three from the top of the key while drawing the foul. Andriana Avent split a pair of free throws on the other end a few seconds later, ensuring a win. Then Julie Ramirez was fouled as she launched one from deep. The clock showed 0.0, but was restored to 0.3. Ramirez netted the first two, and after a timeout, intentionally missed the third. It didn’t draw iron, and Sacramento safely inbounded as time ran out.
“We demanded the energy change on defense,” Sacramento coach Michele Massari stated.
“Our free throws tonight did not fall,” Heritage coach Rob Ocon said. “We have a great group of kids and we will grow as a team from this game.”
Avent led Sacramento (14-7) with 19 points, while Samayoa-Mathis added 12 and Walters contributed 11. Sweeney had 12 for Heritage (16-3), while Abby Muse tallied 10 points, 10 rebounds, and five blocks, and Kidest Befikadu chipped in nine points.
Miramonte routs Sacred Heart Cathedral
Miramonte exploded in the second half, outscoring Sacred Heart Cathedral buy 18 in the third quarter alone to pave the way for a 98-68 win. Four Mats knotted double figures, and in all 10 players put a score in the books. Miramonte led 24-13 after one, but the Fightin’ Irish made it a game in the second quarter, reducing the advantage to six by halftime. A quick 12-2 spurt opened up the third, however, and the Mats (20-2) simply coasted from there.
Jordan Allred had a team-high 20 points, followed by Erin Tarasow with 18 (including 13 in the first quarter), and Rebecca Welsh and Mia Mastrov with 14 each. Mykaangela Mabandos, in part filling in for starting point guard Amerika De Los Santos, had nine of the bench, including seven in the third. Emily Huston did her usual beyond-the-scoring-column damage, getting seven rebounds and three steals in the first half. Miramonte hit 15 times from three-point territory, including five from the bench.
“Our first half, we weren’t finishing too well but our defensive intensity was there that got the lead for us,” Miramonte coach Kelly Sopak remarked. “(In the second half) the extra passes were there. We did a much better job of kicking off the drives.”
Da’Myiah Lewis did all she could for Sacred Heart Cathedral (7-10), scoring 25 points and collecting seven boards.
Berkeley holds off Modesto Christian’s late rally
It wasn’t pretty, but Berkeley did what was needed to pull out a 49-44 defeat of Modesto Christian in the opening game. Yanira Gabourel was the starring attraction, with 24 points, nine rebounds, eight steals, and two assists for the Yellowjackets (16-4). Freshmen Cora Grover and Kiara White led Modesto Christian (8-12) with 13 and 11 points respectively.
Modesto Christian started the fourth on a 10-0 run, watching as Berkeley misfired on several three-point attempts, and again closed the gap to two with 16.9 seconds left. Jade Brewer sank a pair of free throws, and hit one more following a travel call against Modesto Christian, sealing the win.
“It’s time to try to get Berkeley back on the map,” Berkeley coach Michael Woolridge said. “We’re still learning.”
St. Joseph Notre Dame tops Bear Creek
Zhane Duckett and Malia Mastora scored 14 and 13 points respectively as St. Joseph Notre Dame (14-5) outscored Bear Creek (16-4) in all but the fourth quarter in a 64-50 victory. Bruins’ standout Mya Blake was held to nine points while Junae Mahan had 12. Pilots’ head coach Shawn Hipol called it “very fast paced with both teams pressing and trapping.”
More thoughts on the event
McCord: “From the fans to the parents, they love the energy of this event. And appreciate that we’re giving the kids a chance to talk about it. This is something I was thinking about for years and wanted to do. And we want to improve on it.”
Sopak: “It’s an honor to be invited to these. It was really a neat environment…taking that extra step. It allows us to pause for a second and remember why we’re doing this.”
Ocon: “You could feel the unity before the start of every game and after as well as the teams who just competed took photos together.”
Pezzola: “Malik said ‘We’re doing something that will celebrate Dr. King’s life and legacy before every game.’ I said ‘Sold.’ Our school is a wonderfully diverse school, and we preach what Martin Luther King started. And then I said I want to play two tough teams. I’m happy with the level of competition.”
Hipol: “(It’s) first class. The acknowledgement of (MLK) coupled with very competitive and meaningful games with high level programs is great to be a part of.”
Jackson: “It means a lot, to honor Martin Luther King…if he didn’t done what he did, we wouldn’t be playing in this tournament here today.”
Massari: “We will continue to honor (Dr. King’s) vision and fight daily.”
