Boys basketball
TCAL semifinals: Salesian, Pinole Valley win
The Tri-County Athletic League championship matchup was not decided until the final buzzer in overtime as Vallejo’s three-pointer went long and Pinole Valley escaped with a 67-65 semifinal victory on Thursday night.
Kaleb Allison scored 10 of his game-high 24 points in overtime, and Jordy McKenzie and Zion Wilburn chipped in 15 and 13 points, respectively, for Pinole Valley.
Vallejo’s Donovon Saiyad had 22 points, and Tariq McNeal finished with 19.
The Spartans’ reward after improving to 24-4?
A rematch against perennial powerhouse Salesian, a team that handed Pinole Valley 77-75 and 66-59 losses in the regular season.
Salesian – ranked second by the Bay Area News Group – beat St. Patrick-St. Vincent in the other semifinal.
Those were Salesian’s only league wins by less than 20 points, and Pinole Valley coach Danny Rynning expects the third meeting to be just as close as the first two.
“Our team is super pumped to get another crack at Salesian,” Rynning told the Bay Area News Group via text. “ We felt we let them off the hook the first two games and, hopefully, we have learned from those losses.“
If Thursday night’s 73-48 victory over SPSV is any indication, Salesian (20-7) will be in top form for Saturday’s championship game at home.
Amani Johnson led Salesian with 14 points, and Elias Obenyah (12) and do-it-all wing DeUndrae Perteete (10) joined Johnson in double figures.
Coach Bill Mellis’ team has lost only one regular season game to TCAL competition since 2018.
If Pinole Valley can defeat Salesian on Saturday, it will be the first team to beat the Richmond powerhouse in the league playoffs since 2015.
“We know from here on, every game is going to be tough and we have to continue to play good defense and try out best to win the rebounding battle,” Mellis said via text.
Boasting a non-league schedule that includes close losses to defending Open Division champ Centennial-Corona and another SoCal power Notre Dame-Sherman Oaks, and wins against Oakland Athletic League champ Oakland Tech and a 23-5 Canyon-Anaheim team, Salesian is expected to be among the favorites to win the North Coast Section’s Open Division title.
“I’m sure Coach Mellis will also have his team ready, so it should be another fun matchup,” Rynning said.
No. 5 Clayton Valley 57, Northgate 35
Clayton Valley Charter clinched at least a tie for the Diablo Athletic League Foothill Division championship on Thursday night, winning at home over Northgate.
James Moore scored 16 points and Elijah Perryman added 10 to lead the Ugly Eagles.
Campolindo can claim a share of the title with a victory at home on Saturday against Acalanes.
If Acalanes wins, Clayton Valley is the outright champ.
Clayton Valley led by two after one quarter on Thursday and by 12 at halftime.
The Ugly Eagles stretched the advantage to 14 after three quarters as they improved to 22-4, 10-2.
Northgate fell to 9-17, 5-7.
No. 20 Las Lomas 78, College Park 65
After winning by double digits over DAL Foothill leaders Clayton Valley and Campolindo in the past week, sizzling Las Lomas found itself in a tight game at home against College Park.
The visitors led 17-16 after one quarter, and the score was tied 32-32 at halftime.
In the third quarter, Las Lomas returned to its recent form, outscoring College Park 24-9 to break open the game.
Las Lomas (17-9, 9-3) went on to extend its winning streak to seven games in its final game before starting the North Coast Section Division II playoffs next week.
College Park dropped to 14-12, 3-9.
Berkeley clinches WACC Foothill crown
Berkeley wrapped up the West Alameda County Conference Foothill Division title on Thursday when Bishop O’Dowd lost to San Leandro 65-60 in double overtime.
Had O’Dowd prevailed, Berkeley would have needed to win at Piedmont on Friday to capture the outright championship.
Berkeley is 9-2 in league play. O’Dowd fell to 8-4.
Girls basketball
TCAL: Salesian, Pinole Valley advance to final
It will be a Salesian vs. Pinole Valley doubleheader on Saturday for the TCAL championship as the girls teams also reached the final.
No. 14 Pinole Valley edged No. 13 St. Patrick-St. Vincent 53-50 to advance to play Saturday at No. 3 Salesian, a 72-29 winner over St. Mary’s-Berkeley.
In Salesian’s win, Makiah Asidanya (19 points), Sofia Fidelus (14) and Eryn Gardner (10) scored in double figures. Gardner also had 10 rebounds.
No. 8 Acalanes 64, No. 11 Miramonte 54
Acalanes (19-6, 11-0) celebrated senior night by clinching the Diablo Athletic League Foothill Division title with a win over Miramonte (22-4, 10-2), its only competition for the league crown.
Acalanes had won the first matchup 70-49 last month.
Sophomore guard Sophie Chinn led Acalanes with 22 points and also had six rebounds and four steals. KK Lacanlale also had a great all-around game with 13 points, seven assists and five steals, and 6-foot-1 sophomore Dulci Vail barely missed getting a double-double with nine points and 14 rebounds.
Miramonte’s leading scorer was forward Karena Eberts, who had 25 points. Guard Katherine Scheingart scored 14, and senior Courtney Scheingart had 10 points and made two three-pointers.
“Miramonte played well, and we came alive in the second half,” Acalanes coach Margaret Gartner told the Bay Area News Group via text.
With only one more regular season game against Campolindo left, Acalanes is almost ready to shift its focus to the playoffs.
Acalanes has won six straight games and has only lost once in 2023. Every win since the new year has been by double digits. The Dons aren’t sure where they will be seeded in the NCS playoffs – matchups will be announced Sunday – but also don’t seem to be too worried about it, either.
“We did the best we could, that’s all we can do,” Gartner said. “Now it’s up to NCS.”
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