LOS ALTOS HILLS, Calif. - The West Catholic Athletic League, an all-private school conference of the Central Coast Section that stretches 60 miles from San Francisco to the southern tip of San Jose, is regarded as one of the best and strongest in California, if not the nation.
St. Francis' Tyler Johnson in last year's NorCal finals.
File photo by Dennis Lee
When a league championship is on the line, the competition, spirit and pageantry is hard to beat. In basketball, gyms are packed, heated and raucous.
Such will be the scene at Foothill College tonight when two fairly unlikely state powers Serra (San Mateo, Calif.) (22-4), ranked 20th by MaxPreps.com, and No. 18 St. Francis (Mountain View, Calif.) (24-2) face off.
St. Francis, which beat Serra twice during the regular season, was a Northern California Division II finalist last season but lost its two leading scorers and six seniors to graduation.
The Lancers were expected to contend for the WCAL regular-season title but not finish as the first 14-0 team in league history (five other teams in the 53-year history of the league went undefeated, but 12-0 was the best previous mark).
Serra was 11-14 last year and though the Padres returned seven seniors, few saw 22-4 coming or 9-3 in league play.
Now the teams face off for the league tournament title. Here is a look at each squad’s rise to prominence this season. St. Francis won the previous two meetings 67-51 and 51-45.
ST. FRANCIS RISING
St. Francis boys basketball coach Mike Motil loves to tell the story, about how his lone Division I player Tyler Johnson missed a layup in his first game on the freshman team.
And then he cried.
“Real tears. … on the bench,” said Motil, who was then the freshman coach. “I told him if he didn’t stop crying I couldn’t put him back in. Ever.”
Motil likes telling about Johnson’s humble beginnings to not to embarrass the athletic 6-foot-2 guard who is headed to Fresno State, but to illustrate two points.
One, that Johnson is a tremendously passionate player, the lynchpin of an utterly feisty bunch.
And two, at St. Francis, it’s not about where you start, but where you finish.
In Motil’s first season as head coach last year, the Lancers finished with a 30-3 record at Arco Arena in Sacramento, one win short of a spot in the state finals.
A spot in the state finals is their ultimate goal and destination.
“We just need to keep our heads on straight and keep in mind that if we let our guard down at any point we can get beat,” Johnson said.
Not a prayer that St. Francis is letting up. Not the way Motil handles business.
The 38-year-old coach utilizes his entire 16-man roster with a survival of the fittest mentality. Practices are short but fierce with playing time as a reward and gobs of pushups as a detriment.
“Most times, our practices are tougher than the games,” Johnson said. “There are fights and pushing and shoving but that’s just competition. We don’t take it off the court. We always make up and come out stronger and closer.”
Said Motil: “Ultimately it’s all about relationships. Being part of a team.”
Tyler Johnson and St. Francis hopes to go over the top.
File photo by Dennis Lee
Motil doesn’t announce his starting lineups until game time and he substitutes five-at-a-time in four-minute increments. He also doesn’t bother with stat sheets or game film. Most of his decisions are based on instinct, observation and feel. “It’s about finding the right combinations,” he said. “Even if you play four minutes one night, those minutes will be significant.”
That would seem a tough sell, especially to a kid as talented as Johnson, who according to Archbishop Mitty (San Jose, Calif.) coach Tim Kennedy: “Can jump out of the gym, create his own shot and shoot from NBA range.”
But Johnson has bought in hook, line and sinker. He was the second-leading scorer in the WCAL at 14.3 per game, yet didn’t start a single contest.
That’s right. Motil brings Johnson, arguably the league’s top player, off the bench. And Johnson hasn’t cried once.
He came off the bench Friday to score 13 of his game-high 16 points in the second half of St. Francis’ 63-51 semifinal win.
“All he cares about is winning,” Motil said.
Said Johnson: “I’m 100 percent behind coach. We all are. He obviously knows what he’s doing.”
Spencer Britschgi, a 5-11 senior, is the team’s second-leading scorer at 10.7, followed by 6-1 senior Tim Wang(8.2), 6-3 senior Patrick Crowley (7.0) and 6-4 senior Drew Silver (6.9), who is out indefinitely with an ankle injury.
With such balance, depth and energy, the Lancers are hard to slow down.
“He’s just got waves of guys and they’re all interchangeable,” said Kennedy, whose team plays St. Francis in a Friday semifinal game at Bellarmine. “They can all knock down shots and all rebound and they’re always fresh.”
SERRA’S STRETCH TO GLORY
A 46-42 win at perennial state power De La Salle De La Salle (Concord, Calif.) to take the Chris Vontoure Invitational on Dec. 12 was a strong indication.
So was the 53-52 win at home against then fourth-ranked and perennial NorCal power St. Mary’s-Berkeley two weeks later.
Surely, the biggest sign was when Connor McGrath swished a 27-footer at the buzzer in a 46-43 double-overtime win at Bellarmine, a place his team was beat at the buzzer the previous year.
But Serra coach Chuck Rapp assures that the clearest indicator that a fantastic season and turnaround was imminent in April just one week after a nightmarish 11-14 2008-09 season.
“Everyone was in the gym shooting,” Rapp said. “Everyone was in the weight room lifting. I never had to call a meeting. I never had to make an inspirational speech. It was all them.”
Still, not even Rapp could have imagined a 22-win season with essentially the same team.
“The way these guys took responsibility and worked, nothing really has surprised me,” he said.
They figured to improve certainly. The Padres were young last season and they lost a lot of close games – six WCAL losses were by a combined 20 points.
But without a definitive star, little height or firepower, they’ve excelled in non glamorous but rare ways: namely defense, ball movement and unselfishness.
“We don’t care who scores – we really don’t,” said leading scorer Jordan Reudy, a 6-foot-1 senior guard who averages about 12 points per game. “We have a bunch of guys who can score so who it’s whoever has the best shot shoots.”
Said Rapp of Reudy: “He’s a strong shooter, he can get to the hole and he’s an absolute gym rat. All of them are.”
Reudy had a game-high 16 points in Serra’s 51-48 semifinal win over Bellarmine on Friday.
Kevin Ruedy is Serra's leading scorer and heart and soul.
Photo courtesy of Serra High/Kevin Donahue
The rest of the rats with comments from Rapp:
McGrath (5-11 junior point guard) started last year as a sophomore. “He’s a gutsy player who took some lumps last year and learned from them. He’s definitely blossoming into a top-flight point guard.”
Jake Moore (5-9 senior guard) might be the most improved player. “He’s the first on the floor at practice and the last to leave. He can really shoot and also play the point. It’s been really rewarding to see his success.”
Ryan Tana (6-1 senior guard) is the team’s best defender. “He gets every loose ball and plays with reckless abandon. He always guards our opponents’ best player no matter how tall. He can guard the post or perimeter. He’s very strong for his size.”
Mark Jajeh (6-5 senior center) does all the big and little things in the block. “Mark is absolutely key for us. He averages double figures in rebounds, finishes well and is a good shot blocker. He’s come a long, long way.”
The Padres also boast a strong bench with Dalyn Pacheco (6-6), Brendan Sabean (5-9), Matt Vinal (6-2) and Matt Page (6-3) leading the way.
“What’s nice about this team is that no one pointed fingers after last year,” Rapp said. “Everyone held themselves accountable. Every person just said to themselves that this is unacceptable.”
And now?
“And now no one is resting on their laurels,” Rapp said. “It’s amazing what you can do with five guys try their very best on both ends of the court.”
