Basketball Recap: Andrew Nimri's Big Game Can't Quite Lead Pacific Grove over Alisal

Pacific Grove fought the good fight in their overtime contest against Alisal on Thursday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell 80-69 to the Alisal Trojans. Despite running the score up even higher than they did in their prior game last Tuesday (64), the Breakers still had to take the loss.

Pacific Grove's defeat came despite a true team effort from the offense, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Andrew Nimri, who almost dropped a double-double on 25 points and nine rebounds. That's the most boards Nimri has posted since back in January of 2024. Sergen Serttunc was another key player, going 8 of 18 on his way to 20 points along with six rebounds and four blocks.

Alisal was led to victory by Misael Palafox and Kike Jacinto. Palafox dropped a triple-double on 34 points, 14 boards, and ten assists, while Jacinto dropped a triple-double on 21 points, 14 rebounds, and 14 assists. That makes it four consecutive games in which Palafox has scored at least a third of Alisal's points. Another player making a difference was Christian Lopez, who posted eight points and ten boards.

Pacific Grove has traveled a rocky road recently having lost three of their last four matches, which put a noticeable dent in their 6-5 record this season. As for Alisal, their win bumped their record up to 10-2.

Pacific Grove has already played their next game, a 51-35 loss against Carmel on the 11th. As for Alisal, they also didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next contest, a 46-44 defeat against Monterey on the 13th.