‘Balers Fall in Deep Hole Early, Worn Out in Comeback Attempt
Late
Gilroy – The San Benito boys basketball team knew going into its road contest against Gilroy last night that its opponent presented a combination of size and athleticism that would pose a real challenge, especially if the Mustangs jumped out to an early lead.
Well, those match-up problems came into play from the game’s start, as the Haybalers saw Gilroy race to a quick 12-4 advantage. Though San Benito never let the game get completely away from itself, it also trailed the entire night and fell 53-40 in its Tri-County Athletic League opener.
“It’s always pretty tough to play from behind,” said ‘Balers forward Todd Janisch, who finished with nine points. “They were beating us on the boards the whole night.”
Though San Benito (5-7, 0-1 TCAL) trailed by 13 at halftime, the team showed its resilience in pulling to within 36-29 when sophomore forward Kevin Burley pulled down an offensive rebound and converted the put-back. But the ‘Balers’ aggressive defense landed them in foul trouble and eventually wore them down, a combination that Gilroy exploited to secure the victory.
San Benito head coach John Becerra wished his team exerted as much energy in driving to the hoop as it did in pressuring Mustang ballhandlers.
“I thought we took too many outside shots,” said Becerra. “We’ve got to start going inside more.”
The ‘Balers seemed content to swing the ball around the perimeter and take the first open look, rather than work for inside position and get their post players the ball. Gilroy enjoyed a height advantage at every spot on the floor, a fact that Becerra said made a comeback more challenging.
“Height always wears you down,” said Becerra, “because the tall kid doesn’t have to jump for the rebound. By the fourth quarter, your legs are gone and now you can’t shoot from the outside, you can’t rebound.”
At the same time, the coach spoke of his determination to unearth an inside game as the ‘Balers return to practice because, “every team’s going to have a size advantage on us this year.”
Gilroy (10-6, 1-0 TCAL) turned to its senior duo of Jeremy Teschera and Ryan Chisolm to put the ‘Balers on their heals from the opening tip. The two Mustangs combined for 14 points as Gilroy posted a 16-10 lead after the first quarter.
Janisch provided San Benito with a spark off the bench with his six second-quarter points, but even with a reverse lay-up by Daryl Baladad just before the buzzer, the ‘Balers still trailed 31-20 at the intermission.
San Benito appeared determined to make good on its third-quarter comeback attempt as the team’s defense held the Mustangs to just five points in the period.
“That just shows our intensity,” said San Benito center Dean Wilkins, who anchored the team’s defense with five blocks. “We just want to go after it and steal the ball.”
But that same aggressiveness resulted in the ‘Balers being whistled for four fouls within a 10-second span midway through the quarter, a sequence that guaranteed Gilroy a trip to the foul line for any ‘Baler infraction the rest of the way.
Sure enough, the Mustangs enjoyed a parade to the charity stripe in the fourth quarter, and their lights-out 13-15 performance sealed San Benito’s defeat. On the night, Gilroy shot 20-27 from the free-throw line, while the ‘Balers were just 4-6.
Wilkins, a 6-foot-4 senior, led the San Benito offense with 11 points and showed off his range with a three-pointer from the left corner as time was running down in the fourth quarter. Baladad added nine points and Vince Bautista came off the bench to hit two three-pointers and finished with six points.
Gilroy had four players reach double digits, led by Teschera and Kameron Handy with 14 each.
Mustangs head coach Bud Ogden said the ‘Balers made his team earn the league win.
“This is what it’s going to be like every night [in the TCAL]; a dogfight,” said Ogden. “Tonight we got a taste of the physical play that’s going to be part of our future.”
