Balers defeat Matadors 54-49 in first round of Division I
playoffs
The dagger never really came on Tuesday night, although neither
did San Benito’s second-half demons.
”
It’s doing what you need to do in order to win,
”
Balers head coach Tracy Carpenter said,
”
and we haven’t always done that.
”
Balers defeat Matadors 54-49 in first round of Division I playoffs
The dagger never really came on Tuesday night, although neither did San Benito’s second-half demons.
“It’s doing what you need to do in order to win,” Balers head coach Tracy Carpenter said, “and we haven’t always done that.”
Nothing flashy or show-stopping — except for perhaps Jordan Belton’s 40-foot buzzer-beater at the end of the third quarter — Tuesday’s Central Coast Section Division I matchup between No. 12 San Benito (14-11) and No. 13 Monta Vista (13-12) didn’t necessarily feature any singular moment for the winning team — just, well, gritty team basketball.
Behind five players dropping double-digit point totals, the Balers ended their four-game losing skid Tuesday night when they prevailed in a 54-49 victory over visiting Monta Vista — and the win could not have come a moment too soon. Never leading by more than five points during the second half, San Benito closed out the Matadors from the free-throw line with a 4 of 6 performance in the final minute, staving off elimination in the process.
“It was one of the better games we’ve played,” said Carpenter, whose Balers were 16 of 26 from the charity stripe, 4 of 10 from 3-point range on Tuesday. “I don’t know what the stats are, but we shoot way better at home than away.”
Carpenter shortened his bench for the postseason and played eight against Monta Vista as opposed to his usual 10-man rotation. Only five Balers found the box score in the game, too, although all five scored in double digits.
Devin Wingo chimed in with 10 points, both Cooper Sepulveda and Tyler Rickard deposited 11 points apiece and Jordan Belton contributed a team-high 12 points, including five in the second quarter.
“I think when we got the lead, we kept trying to go up, go up, and we were forcing it a little bit,” Belton said. “But coach said when we get the ball, we need to hold on to the ball a little more.
“That’s how we’ve been playing (this season). We take less possessions and better shots than more rushed shots and having to get back on ‘D.'”
In the game, Monta Vista, anchored by a game-high 19 points from Krish Rangarajan, took 13 more shots than San Benito.
Although Monta Vista’s Rangarajan managed to find the big basket when needed, despite the Balers double-teaming him in the paint, Belton’s trey from roughly 40 feet to end the third quarter, then a put-back jumper from five feet to open the fourth quarter, supplied San Benito with a six-point cushion late in the game.
“We had a few, big mistakes down at the end,” Monta Vista coach Matt Tait said.
San Benito vs. Carlmont
San Benito’s scheduled second=round game against No. 5 Carlmont (21-5) took place after The Weekend Pinnacle’s press time. Log on to www.freelancenews.com/sports for the latest results.
