NorCal boys basketball finals roundup: Sheldon fights back to win D1 title

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - D'erryl Williams said he heard laughter. As in, his Sheldon (Sacramento) Huskies had dug themselves such a hole, they were buried and dead, plane and simple.

"Everyone had counted us out," Williams said. "People were actually laughing. The only ones who thought we could come back was us. And we did it."

That they did.

In front of about 7,000 fans, the Huskies (29-5) fought back from a 17-point first half deficit to knock off Delta River League rival Jesuit (Carmichael, Calif.) 61-56 in the State North Region Division I championship at Power Balance Pavilion.

It was the fourth straight win for Sheldon over Jesuit this season and lauched the Huskies into their first state title game, which will come against perennial national power Mater Dei-Santa Ana, which will be making its 13th appearance.

Williams made sure his team never gave in, scoring a game-high 23 points on 7-of-12 shoot, to go along with six rebounds and four steals. His toughness mirrored his team's as the thick and physical 6-foot-2, 180-pound junior fought through a dislocated pinkie on his non-shooting hand.

Sheldon didn't take its first lead 57-56 until two free throws by Dakarai Allen (16 points, seven rebounds) with 1 minute, 46 seconds repaining. The free throws were part of a 12-2 run to close the game and end a gallant effort by Jesuit, which upset top-seed De La Salle-Concord on Tuesday.

"Jesuit is a great team," Williams said. "And they came out and jumped on us. We just never gave up or gave in. It was a long tough fight but we got it done."

Behind the remarkably balanced effort from Akachi Okugo, Parker Uu and Kurt Parker all with 12 points, Jesuit jumped to a 23-6 lead early in the second quarterback before a 10-0 run, keyed by six points from Antonio Lewis helped close the gap to 25-16 by halftime.

Sheldon coach Jerry Rollings, frustrated to be sure, also found a silver lining.

"I told the guys that that's as good as they can play and that's the worst that we can play and we were only down nine," Rollings said. "It could only get better."

Jesuit remained in control in the third quarter behind some strong play from Parker, but then Williams began to assert himself. He opened the fourth quarter with a putback and a 3-point play and added two more driving layups and two more free throws to complete an 11-point fourth quarter, when Sheldon outscored Jesuit 25-14.

His driving layup got the Huskies to within 54-53 but after a driving layup from Uu, Allen took over with a spectacular follow shot, a steal and drive to the hoop while being fouled. His two free throws gave Sheldon the lead for good and when Nate Iese, who struggled from the line all night, banked in a charity, the Huskies began to celebrate.
 
The team, riddled with juniors, was supposed to cave to the senior-strong Marauders who finished 27-7. Not so. Sheldon is the first Sacramento-area team to reach the large-school state finals since Jesuit went back-to-back years in 1993 and 1994.

"Everyone said we were too young to get this done," Rollings said. "But besides being very talented, they have a ton of heart. They're all warriors. I'm very proud of them."

Sheldon 61, Jesuit 56

JESUIT (27-7)
Akachi Okugo 5-8 1-4 12, Lake Lutes 2-4 0-2 5, Parker Uu 5-10 2-2 12, Bryce Pressley 5-10 0-0 10, Brian Glodowski 2-6 0-2 5, Kurt Parker 3-6 5-8 12. Totals 22-44 8-18 56.

SHELDON (29-5)
Kyi Thomas 4-10 0-0 10, D'erryl Williams 7-12 9-15 23, Kakarai Allen 6-14 3-6 16, Nate Iese 0-2 4-9 4, Ryan Manning 0-3 0-0 0, Tyler Morris 0-1 0-0 0, Antonio Lewis 4-6 0-0 8. Totals 21-48 16-30 61.

Jesuit    17  8  17  14  - 56
Sheldon  6 10 20  25  - 61

3-point goals: Jesuit 4-13 (Okugo, Lutes, Glodowski, Parker). Sheldon 3-16 (Thomas 2, Allen). Rebounds: Jesuit 33 (Glodowski 10), Sheldon 28 (Allen 7). Turnovers: Jesuit 18, Sheldon 9. 

Division II
Archbishop Mitty (San Jose) 63, Newark Memorial 58
There was little celebration from the defending state champion even though the Monarchs (30-3) fought back from a six-point fourth-quarter deficit to defeat the North Coast Section champions by closing with a 24-13 run.

Aaron Gordon led the way with 21 points, 15 rebounds and three blocks, but he had plenty of help from Thomas Peters (15 points) and Neil Vranicar (14).

“Our goal from day one was to repeat as champions,” Gordon said. “We won’t really celebrate until that happens.”

Newark Memorial, which got 17 points by Casey Norris, 14 from Joey Frenchwood and 11 by Sultan Siddig, looked in control with tough interior defense. But finally, Mitty got out in transition.

"That's our game," Mitty coach Tim Kennedy said.

The win was Mitty’s 19th straight and stopped Newark Memorials 21-game win streak.

Mitty made 22 of 40 shots which was better than it shot from the foul line (15 of 31). Gordon made 7 of 8 shots, including a 3-pointer.

Gordon, one of the nation’s top juniors, was 6-for-18 from the line but he made up for it in every other facet.

Newark Memorial, which reached the finals with a 48-46 over Serra thanks to 23 points by Norris, was in control for most of the game. But a 10-0 run by Mitty midway through the fourth turned the tide.

One of the state's top coaches Craig Ashmore was predictably pained afterward but recognized his team's improvement. Earlier in the year, Mitty defeated Newark Memorial by 20 points.

"I don't think our guys are into moral victories so they're disappointed," Ashmore said. "I'm proud of our effort. We came to win, but just didn't get it done."

Mitty 63, Newark Memorial 58
NEWARK MEMORIAL (28-5)
Casey Morris 6-11 2-3 17, Joey Frenchwood 4-14 4-6 14, Damien Banford 0-6 0-0 0, Kenneth Jones 2-6 0-0 4, Paramvir Singh 1-2 2-2 4, Jalan Roger 2-6 4-4 8, Yusef Farougi 0-2 0-0 0, Sultan Siddiq 4-11 1-5 11, Matthew Thomas 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 19-59 13-21 58.

MITTY (30-3)
Jack Biebel 1-4 0-0 2, Neil Vranicar 6-11 0-0 14, Jordan White 0-4 3-4 3, Thomas Peters 5-8 4-5 15, Aaron Gordon 7-8 6-18 21, Connor Peterson 1-3 2-4 4, Brandon Farrell 2-2 0-0 4. Totals 22-40 15-31 63.

Newark Memorial 10 13  19  16  -  58
Mitty                      13 12 12  26  -  63

3-point goals: Newark Memorial 7-19 (Norris 3, Frenchwood 2, Sultan 2), Mitty 4-11 (Vranicar 2, Peters, Gordon). Rebounds: Newark Memorial 35 (Norris 6), Mitty 38 (Gordon 15). Turnovers: Newark Memorial 16, Mitty 21.

Division III
Sacred Heart Cathedral (San Francisco) 61, Bishop O'Dowd (Oakland) 57

No luck of the Irish here on St. Patrick's Day. The Irish of Sacred Heart Cathedral earned this one, fighting back from a 13-point first-quarter deficit to claim this tough, entertaining, evenly-matched title game.

Joshua Fox, playing on a less than 100 percent left ankle, willed Sacred Heart Cathedral back in the game and finished with a game-high 21 points, a team-high 13 rebounds and three blocks.

Front-court teammate Taylor Johns picked it up in the second half and had 15 points and 10 rebounds and Herman Pratt scored 13 points as the Irish (28-5) won their third regional title while dethroning the two-time defending champions.

O'Dowd (26-6) got 15 points from Marcus Green and 14 points by Terrence Daniel, but the Dragons managed just 34 points the final three quarters after taking a 23-10 lead with 1:12 left in the first quarter.

Sacred Heart Cathedral maintained its poise, stopped settling for perimeter shots and held its own down low.

The biggest play of the game came with 37 second seconds left and the Irish clinging to a 55-52 lead. O'Dowd's Richard Longrus (eight points, 14 rebounds) dove on a loose ball and when Sacred Heart Cathedral's Tyler Petroni dove in to tie the ball up, the Dragons tried to call timeout.

While three or four of the players were attempting to get the referees attention, Petroni pulled out the ball and fed Fox for an uncontested dunk. That essentially was the game.

"We do what we need to do," Petroni said. "The ball was free, and I just went for it."

Said Sacred Heart Cathedral coach Darrell Barbour: "That's just Tyler Petroni. Whatever he needs to do to help the team. That's the way all these guys are. I couldn't be prouder of them."

Said Bishop O'Dowd coach Doug Vierra: "That play was a microcosm of the game."

Vierra was hoping to finish off the season - his last - with a state title. The last two years the Dragons came up just short in the state title game. Last week Vierra announced he was going to step away to spend more time with his family.

"I definitely wanted to win to get another week," Vierra said. "I'll have a little time to think about how special these guys are and the players that came before them. And all those relationships. ... Those will continue. Right now, this is tough."

Sacred Heart Cathedral 61, Bishop O'Dowd 57

BISHOP O'DOWD (26-6)
Josh Crum 2-5 2-4 6, Terrence Daniel 7-11 0-0 14, Marcus Green 6-10 3-3 15, Richard Longrus 3-11 2-8 8, Kendall Jackson 0-11 0-0 0, Mike Texadda 1-2 1-2 4, Dominic Gomes 2-7 3-4 7, Ivan Rabb 0-1 1-2 1, Michael Perri 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 22-60 12-23 57.

SACRED HEART CATHEDRAL (28-5)
Josh Fox 8-12 3-6 21, Taylor Johns 7-13 1-3 15, Tyler Petroni 2-7 0-1 5, Khalil James 0-3 4-4 4, Herman Pratt 5-18 2-2 13, Deondre Otis 1-3 0-0 3. Totals 23-56 10-16 61.

Bishop O'Dowd 23 7 10 17 - 57
Sacred Heart Cathedral 14 16 16 15 - 61

3-point goals: BOD 1-11 (Texada), SHC 5-20 (Fox 2, Petroni, Pratt, Otis). Rebounding: Bishop O'Dowd 44 (Longrus 14), SHC 40 (Fox 13). Assists: BOD 6 (Longrus 3), SHC 5 (Petroni 2).

Division IV
Salesian (Richmond) 69, Sacred Heart Prep (Atherton) 38

If there were any doubts that the Salesian had full control of its regional final against Sacred Heart Prep, Jabari Bird erased them with his first two shots of the second quarter.

With The Pride already leading 20-5, Bird stole the ball at midcourt and went in for a dunk. Salesian quickly stole the ball again and Bird found himself on the receiving end of an alley oop dunk.

The two dunks highlighted a 24-point performance for Bird, who led Salesian to a 69-38 win. The Pride will play Price (Los Angeles) for the CIF championship next weekend at Power Balance Pavilion in Sacramento.

While the score was definitely lopsided, Salesian coach Bill Mellis pointed out that not everything went right for his team.

"The score was a little deceiving because Sacred Heart Prep exposed some of our weaknesses and we did make some mistakes," he said. "We will definitely have things to work on for next week."

The Pride have not lost to a California team this year, going 33-2 with losses to a pair of Florida teams.

"We played In Florida to get ready for games like this," said Mellis. "That's why we had the schedule we did this year. It's to get us ready for next week."

The Pride lost in the state finals to Windward last season after winning the championship in 2009.

The Pride shot 58 percent on the night compared to just 28 percent for the Gators. Salesian also outrebounded Sacred Heart Prep 38-27.

Davion Mize added 11 points for Salesian while Cole McConnell led the Gators (23-7) with 15.


Salesian 69, Sacred Heart Prep 38

SACRED HEART PREP (23-7)
Matt McNamara 1-1 2-4 6, Pat Bruni 2-6 0-1 5, Franklin Bird 1-5 2-2 4, Cole McConnell 5-12 2-2 15, Ricky Gallani 2-7 1-2 5, Tyler Vaudell 1-1 0-2 2, Ian Bennett 1-5 0-0 2. Totals 13-47 7-13 38.

SALESIAN (33-2)
Harrison Jawian 1-1 0-0 2, Mario Junn 3-6 0-0 6, Markel Leonard 1-6 1-2 3, Dante Robinson 1-1 0-0 2, Davion Mize 5-7 0-0 11, Jabari Bird 9-14 4-5 24, Jermaine Edmonds 3-3 0-1 7, Freddie Tagaloa 4-5 0-3 8, Jeffrey Parker 3-6 0-0 6. Totals 30-51 5-12 69.

Sacred Heart Prep  5  12  12  9  -  38
Salesian                 20 16  21 12 -  69

3-point goals: Sacred Heart Prep 5-18 (McConnell 3, McNamara, Bruni), Salesian 4-10 (Bird 2, Mize, Edmonds). Rebounds: Sacred Heart Prep 27 (McConnell 5), Salesian 38 (Dunn 6). Turnovers: Sacred Heart Prep 20, Salesian 15.

Division V
St. Joseph Notre Dame (Alameda) 77, Pinewood (Los Altos Hills) 53

The St. Joseph Notre Dame Pilots set a record for most NorCal Regional boys’ championships with their win over Pinewood on Saturday at Folsom, but there’s no reason to believe coach Don Lippi and his team are content with that prize.

“Even though we lost a bunch of seniors last year, I told these guys they were capable of being better,” said Lippi, who won his 701st game, the top active mark in Northern California and third overall in the state. “If you believe in something enough, you can make it happen. At this point we have a better record than last year’s team and last year we won a state championship. Right now we are playing as well as any team I’ve had.”

The Pilots have won a record eight NorCal Regionals, breaking a tie for first place with Bishop O’Dowd. Lippi has coached four of those teams with this year’s group now 29-4 on the season.

Limiting Pinewood (27-3) to just 29 percent shooting on the day, the Pilots blew the game open in the fourth quarter with a 21-7 run.

The Pilots had four players in double figures, led by senior Gemeny Givens with 17. Nick Lacy added 16 points while Temidayo Yussef and Justin Brown each had 15. Yussef added 11 rebounds.

Pinewood (27-3) received 14 points from Dante Fraioli and 12 from Kevin Sweat.


St. Joseph 77, Pinewood 53

PINEWOOD (27-3)
Wolfgramm 2-10 3-6 7, Dante Fraioli 3-12 6-7 14, Bradly Naumann 3-13 0-0 8, Cameron Helvey 4-8 0-2 8, Kevin Sweat 4-11 1-2 12, Owen Lewis 1-2 2-3 4. Totals 17-58 12-20 53.

ST. JOSEPH (29-4)
James LaFolletta 1-4 0-0 3, Marc Voisenat 1-5 0-0 3, Justin Brown 7-8 1-3 15, Temiadayo Yussef 3-6 9-11 15, Nick Lacy 5-13 3-3 16, Gemeny Givens 6-10 2-2 17, Lawrence Geyden 2-4 0-0 4, Lamont Banks 2-5 0-1 4. Totals 27-57 15-20 77.

Pinewood   22  7  17  7  -  53
St. Joseph  20 15 21 21 - 77

3-point goals: Pinewood 7-30 (Sweat 3, Frafoli 2, Naumann 2), St. Joseph 8-20 (Lacy 3, Givens 3, LaFolletta, Voisenat). Rebounds: Pinewood 35 (Helvey 16), St. Joseph 41 (Yussef 11). Turnovers: Pinewood 14, St. Joseph 14.