Haybalers earn No. 9 seed, will face No. 8 Independence on
Thursday night in San Jose
SAN JOSE
San Benito head coach John Becerra was certainly surprised after Sunday’s Central Coast Section seeding meeting in San Jose.
Not only did he think his ‘Baler boys basketball team would be seeded lower than they were, but he also figured Independence High would be seeded, well, higher than they actually were.
“I am surprised we were that high,” Becerra said. “I thought we’d be a little lower than that.”
Nevertheless, San Benito (14-12) earned the No. 9 seed in this week’s Division I playoffs and will square off against No. 8 Independence (21-6) at Independence High in San Jose on Thursday night.
Tip-off is at 7 p.m.
All the surprises may revolve around Evergreen Valley, though. The Cougars, which were the 15-seed last season, went 7-5 in the preseason this year and were eligible for the Division I playoffs. But they never filed for the postseason, and subsequently jumbled the seeds.
San Benito, meanwhile, may have received a little luck as well, as they were awarded a seed three spots lower than No. 12 Monta Vista (14-12), which defeated the ‘Balers 61-52 on Dec. 9.
Monta Vista will take on No. 13 Alvarez (15-10), with the winner advancing to play No. 5 Salinas (20-7).
A win for the ‘Balers on Thursday, though, would set up a date with top-seeded Piedmont Hills (26-1) on Saturday.
But, as Becerra points out, that’s thinking too far ahead.
“I’m surprised Independence was No. 8. I thought they’d be in the top six,” he said. “They’re pretty good. They like to drive-and-kick and pick up the full-court pressure. That’s what they’ve done in the past and it’s most likely what they’ll do now.”
During last year’s Division I playoffs, the then-No. 6 Haybalers defeated Independence 61-44 in their first matchup before falling to No. 3 Serra 76-48.
But Independence returned eight members of last season’s 13-player team, while San Benito lost 11 of its 14-member squad.
“It’s basically a different team this year,” Becerra said. “They were young last year and they got a lot of players back, but we’re different.”
The 76ers are led by 6-foot senior forward Roy Talactac (12.2 points per game) and 6-foot-1 junior guard Derek Muaava (10.7 ppg, 2.4 assists, 5.2 rebounds).
Although Muaava did not play in last year’s postseason bout, Talactac did and he led Independence to a team-high 11 points.
“We’ll see what happens,” Becerra said. “Pressure is at a certain level in the preseason. But in the regular season it jumps up and when you get to the playoffs, it’s at a different level.”
Other teams in the D-I boys bracket are No. 2 Bellarmine (18-8), No. 3 Carlmont (21-4), No. 4 Serra (11-15), No. 6 Santa Teresa (16-9), No. 7 Alisal (18-8), No. 10 Gilroy (14-12), No. 11 Homestead (13-12), and No. 14 Andrew Hill (12-11).
“If we’re still playing on Saturday, great,” Becerra said. “So many teams are sitting on the sidelines right now. But we’re still playing.”
