SANTA CLARA, CA — Fresh off being named the West Catholic Athletic boys basketball player of the year, Mitty’s Ben Kone showed why.
Kone finished with game-highs of 30 points and 12 rebounds to lead the No. 3-seeded Monarchs to a 63-55 win over No. 6-seeded Palma in a Central Coast Section Open Division quarterfinal game.
“He’s a big-time Division I player and you all know that,” said Palma coach Kelley Lopez. “When you give a guy like that 30 it’s half their points. It’s a big difference. We did a pretty good job quite honestly on everything else. We don’t usually give up 30 to a guy. If we give up 20 we win tonight. He’s a great player and the difference tonight.”
Kone knocked down several mid-range jump shots, crashed the offensive boards where he collected seven of his 12 boards and hit two 3-pointers including one at first half buzzer.
Kone was aided by fellow post player Nick LaBruna who also added a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds.
“This Palma team was great,” said Kone. “Great coaching sending double teams the whole night. Wyatt (Maker) he’s a great shooter and good in the post and real scrappy. (Josh Keselicka) is a good player, (Jack Brusa) is a great knock down shooter, (Garrett Maker) crashes the glass — (Palma) is just an all around great team.”
Palma — which finished 12-0 in the MBL-Gabilan — scored 42 of its points in the second, but had trouble finding any offensive rhythm or getting any clean looks at the basket in the first half.
In all, Mitty out-rebounded Palma a combined 39-16.
“I think we hit the glass really hard on offensive rebounds,” said LaBruna. “We kept composed and playing our game. Getting it to Ben - he was a beast tonight, it was a good team win.”
The Chieftains were held to only four second quarter points but held Mitty to its lowest scoring quarter of the game with 10 that was capped when Kone knocked down a 3-pointer at the top of the key as the first half buzzer sounded giving the Monarchs a 23-13 halftime lead.
“That second quarter we got away from what we do well,” said Lopez. “In a game like this when you have the eight best teams in the section and you give them a little lead, we just couldn’t get back to that point.”
Mitty (16-9) maintained a double-digit lead going into the fourth quarter when the Chieftains started the period on an 8-2 run to get within four points — the closest Palma had been since the first quarter — causing Mitty coach Tim Kennedy to call a timeout.
The Monarchs were able to build their lead back up to as many as nine, but the Chieftains wouldn’t go away.
Palma (21-4) got within four at 56-52 with 2:42 to go in the game but wouldn’t get any closer.
“Our guys got a little emotional and kind of freaked out,” said Kennedy of Palma’s late fourth quarter run. “We got a breath and regained our focus. Ben settled us and was the equalizer.”
Brusa finished a team-high 12 points and Maker added 10. Keselicka added nine points and Jamaree Bouyea and Maker each chipped in with seven for Palma.
The Chieftains will host No. 7 seed Half Moon Bay in a consolation game Tuesday at 7 p.m. HMB fell to No. 2 seed Serra 66-29 in another Open Division quarterfinal game.
“Tuesday is a huge game, its another D-IV team,” said Lopez. “It’s at our place. It’s going have an effect on the NorCal seedings. If we go out and play well we have a chance to have a couple of home games. It’s a big game for us.”
Mitty will get another shot at Serra (20-5) which beat them in both meetings in WCAL play this year including a 72-46 thumping in San Jose on back on Feb. 12. The game is Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. at Independence High in San Jose.
“Serra is a great team,” said Kone. “They have amazing athletic talent and play great. They run their 1-4 flat amazing, Trevor Brown is a great player, but it’s the playoffs so we’ll see.”
