MORAGA, CA – When it came down to the stretch between St. Mary’s-Stockton and Campolindo in a Saturday matinee non-conference match up, Grant Jory and Jamar Marshall came up big for the Rams, spearheading a late rally to overcome the Cougars, 73-68.
Jory netted 10 of his game-high 26 points, and Marshall scored eight of his 17, in the fourth quarter. Emmanuel Callas led Campolindo (9-4) with 18 points; he converted a three-point play to put his team ahead 64-61 with just over two minutes remaining. Jory, who finished the game 9-for-12 from the field including 5-for-6 on treys, answered with a three-point play of his own and followed that up with a three-pointer to give St. Mary’s a 67-64 lead with 1:05 to go.
After the teams each split free throws, Marshall sank a pair from the charity stripe and Josh DaCruz added another to make it 71-65. The Cougars’ Logan Robeson drained a three and St. Mary’s lost the ball on an inbounds play, but a second attempt from distance by Robeson missed, and Jory grabbed the rebound and finished off the Cougars with a pair of foul shots on the other end.
“I put a look of work in and I’m just glad I can show it for them,” Jory stated. “We got some looks, and we knocked them down when we needed to. Our defense got a lot better down the stretch…so we ended up pulling it away.”
Deven Thompkins, a 6-foot-5 sophomore playing in just his second varsity game after being promoted from Junior Varsity this season, tallied 12 points, including three off a last second heave to end the third period, and DaCruz added 10, for St. Mary’s (12-3). Both players hauled down six rebounds.
Marshall added eight rebounds and five assists to his total, while his younger brother Jadyn dished out four assists in the second half and finished with six boards.
The Cougars enjoyed a 13-3 run in the first quarter and led 37-26 at the break. Aidan Mahaney, a sophomore topping 20 points per game this season, and Robeson, a freshman guard, hit three three-pointers apiece in the first half. Both cooled off in the second half and finished with 16 and 15 points, respectively. Matt Radell also was more effective early on, scoring six of his 13 in the opening quarter.
“In the second half we just gave up way too many buckets,” Callas said.
The teams had some recent history as the ball tipped off: last year St. Mary’s topped Campolindo in Stockton, 58-51, and after each team reached its section championship, the top-seeded Rams fell to No. 9 Serra, which then lost to No. 2 Campolindo in the NorCal Championship. The Cougars went on to capture the state title.
Saturday’s loss ended a five-game winning streak for Campolindo, who prepares for Tuesday’s Diablo Foothill league opener at Northgate on Tuesday. St. Mary’s begins league play on Monday at Tokay.
“The grind continues, but one that we welcome,” Green added. “I think this game indicates we’re improving. It’s no small task beating Campolindo at Campolindo. We have the utmost respect for Coach Dyer and his program.”
