SAN JOSE, CA - In Lewis Carroll’s Alice and Wonderland, Alice is told to “follow the white rabbit.” Friday night in front of a packed gym at Archishop Mitty, Matt McAndrews was the white rabbit and El Cerrito defenders chased him all over the court as he led the Monarchs to a 67-58 win in the first round of the NorCal Open Division Playoffs.
After being down 12-9 after the first quarter and 25-15 midway through the second, McAndrews and the rest of the Monarchs knew they had to get back into the game.
“We were just turning it over, weren’t hitting shots, we were just playing terrible,” said McAndrews. “We started making a run. I took the ball because the defenders weren’t coming to me, so I started taking it to the hole and started finishing.”
Normally a heavily guarded player, McAndrews found himself with open lanes to the basket, which allowed Mitty to make a 17-4 run in the final four minutes of the second quarter and put the Monarchs up 32-29 at the half.
Then, Mitty kept the heat on El Cerrito in the third to extend the lead. Tight defense and emphatic dunks on fast breaks by Ben Kone and Connor Peterson helped the Monarchs jump to a 51-39 lead after three periods.
“We just had to come out and hit them in the mouth,” said Peterson. “It’s embarrassing for us to come out and play soft because that’s not Mitty basketball. When we came out, we had a couple of dunks and we came together and decided to play as a unit.”
The unit Mitty formed played a similar style it had in the previous two quarters to maintain the 10-point lead until the final buzzer. McAndrews finished with 32 points, Peterson with 15, and Kone with 14 points and 18 rebounds.
For El Cerrito, Sayeed Pridgett led the Gauchos with 23 points. Senior Javontae Carleton (12 points) and freshman Aaron Banks (10 points) assisted the sophomore guard.
Coach Michael Booker spoke of his team’s struggles during the second quarter that allowed Mitty to get back in the game.
“We got rattled towards the end of the quarter,” said Booker. “I think at one point we had four straight turnovers, and once (the Monarchs) settled down, they really dictated how we played.”
The loss marks the end of El Cerrito’s season. The Gauchos finish with a 28-5 record, an NCS Open Division Championship appearance, and a CIF NorCal Open Division Playoff Bid.
“I’m just so proud of these young men,” said Booker. “They fought to be 28-5; that’s an incredible record. The only teams we lost to this year were private schools. I think that’s a great season.”
As for Mitty (27-4), it advances to play No. 2-seeded Capitol Christian (27-3) in the quarterfinals of the NorCal Playoffs.
“We’re going to watch film and figure out the game plan,” said coach Tim Kennedy.
“To start off, no turnovers. We also have to be more aggressive,” added McAndrews about the matchup.
Tipoff is Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Capitol Christian High School in Sacramento.
