PG Greg Russell had 18 pts and Ctr Cliff Sammet posted a double-double to lead #4 West Valley (14-4) to a 74-66 win over host Foothill (6-10) Friday afternoon in Los Altos Hills.
West Valley led most of the way, but Foothill stayed close well into the second half before the Vikings went on a 26-6 run to put the game away. That pushed the WVC lead to 21 points at 69-48 with just over 5 minutes left. Foothill closed the gap with a late rally but never got any closer than the final margin of 8 points.
West Valley started the game on a 6-0 run on a pair of threes by Sammet, and led the entire game. But Foothill closed the gap to a single point at 9-8 after that initial WVC burst. West Valley pushed the lead to 10 points at 18-8, but again Foothill rallied to cut the margin to just 2 points at 21-19 and trailed by just 2 at 27-25 late in the first half before a putback basket by Sammet, a three by SF Dominic Cruz-Duncan and a basket by PF Tim Jones gave West Valley a 34-25 lead at the half.
Foothill started the second half on a 17-9 run to cut the West Valley to just a point at 43-42 after a basket by PG Chris Jackson with 14:39 to play.
But then came the 26-6 West Valley run, giving the Vikings control of the game. A bank shot by SG Troy Kalbhenn pushed the lead into double digits at 55-44 with just under 11 minutes left, and a driving lay-up by SG Andrew Hayes pushed the lead to 15 at 61-46. A steal & basket by Jones pushed the margin to 21 points at 69-48 with just under 5 minutes remaining.
For West Valley, it was a tale of two halves; the Vikings took a first half lead by draining 9 threes. But in the second half, they didn't make a single trey. Instead, the pressure defense forced 16 turnovers (the Owls had just 7 in the first half) and grabbed 10 steals.
The most intriguing aspect of the game was the match-up of point guards, which took a a miniature Steve Nash vs. Tony Parker flavor. The 5-8 Jackson, with his long hair, put on a dazzling display of speed, ballhandling and continuous motion en route to a 10-point, 10-rebound, 8-assist game; virtually all of the rebounds came by running down the loose ball at floor level rather than outjumping anyone. And the 5-6 Russell displayed his amazing quickness and great hands by scoring 18 pts, mostly on quick drives to the basket, and also adding 5 rebs, 5 asts and 5 steals.
Other standouts from West Valley included Sammet, whose double-double included 14 pts, 11 rebs, 4 blocked shots and 4 steals, and PF Nicky Alexander, who came off the bench to score 11 pts and grab 7 rebs.
For Foothill, PF Kent Eubanks scored a game-high 24 pts and pulled down 9 rebs. And PF Stephen Waller had 13 pts and 5 boards off the bench.
box score
Friday, December 29, 2006 – 12 noon
at Foothill College, Los Altos Hills
West Valley Vikings 74:
15-Greg Russell, PG – 6/12 fg, 5/7 ft, 5 reb, 5 ast, 5 stl, 2 pf, 18 pts
31-Cliff Sammet, C – 5/11 fg, 11 reb, 4 blk, 4 stl, 3 pf, 14 pts
32-Tim Jones, PF – 3/6 fg, 1 reb, 1 stl, 1 pf, 6 pts
33-Dominic Cruz-Duncan, SF – 3/8 fg, 1/2 ft, 1 reb, 2 ast, 1 pf, 9 pts
42-Troy Kalbhenn, SG – 1/6 fg, 4 reb, 2 ast, 1 blk, 4 pf, 2 pts
11-Andrew Hayes, G – 2/10 fg, 3/4 ft, 4 reb, 1 pf, 7 pts
22-Richmond Kinnah, G – 0/1 fg, 1 ast, 1 pf, 0 pts
23-Ryan Wilkinson, F – 2/4 fg, 5 reb, 3 ast, 1 blk, 1 stl, 1 pf, 5 pts
52-Nicky Alexander, F – 2/6 fg, 6/7 ft, 7 reb, 1 stl, 11 pts
53-Jabari McIntosh, C – 1/2 fg, 3 reb, 1 stl, 1 pf, 2 pts
10-Eric Trisby, G – 1 ast, 1 stl, 2 pf, 0 pts
25-David Fenyvesi, F – 1 pf, 0 pts
50-Bobby Danz, G – 0 pts
team rebounds: 1
Totals: 25/66 fg (.379), 15/20 ft (.750), 42 reb, 14 ast, 6 blk, 14 stl, 18 pf, 74 pts
3-pt fg (9): Sammet 4, Cruz-Duncan 2, Russell, Wilkinson, Alexander
Turnovers (19): Kalbhenn 4, Sammet 3, Hayes 3, Jones 2, McIntosh 2, Trisby 2, Russell, Cruz-Duncan, Wilkinson
Foothill Owls 66:
3-Chris Cannizzaro, SF – 2/7 fg, 2/2 ft, 1 stl, 3 pf, 8 pts
5-Chris Jackson, PG – 3/7 fg, 4/4 ft, 10 reb, 8 ast, 2 stl, 10 pts
11-Humphrey Jackson, SG – 2/8 fg, 0/1 ft, 3 reb, 6 ast, 5 pf, 4 pts
12-Kent Eubanks, PF – 11/23 fg, 9 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk, 2 stl, 1 pf, 24 pts
33-Thomas Gallagher, C – 0/2 fg, 4/4 ft, 4 reb, 3 blk, 1 pf, 4 pts
13-Ian Maher, F – 0/3 fg, 0/1 ft, 6 reb, 1 pf, 0 pts
34-Stephen Waller, F – 6/9 fg, 1/1 ft, 5 reb, 1 ast, 2 stl, 4 pf, 13 pts
23-Andrew Borthwick, G – 0/1 fg, 1 reb, 3 ast, 1 pf, 0 pts
31-Ryan Cruz, G – 1/3 fg, 1/1 ft, 2 reb, 3 pts
team rebounds: 2
Totals: 25/63 fg (.397), 12/16 ft (.750), 42 reb, 19 ast, 4 blk, 8 stl, 16 pf, 66 pts
3-pt fg (4): Cannizzaro 2, Eubanks 2
Fouled Out: H.Jackson 7:19 left
Turnovers (23): Cannizzaro 3, C.Jackson 3, H.Jackson 3, Eubanks 3, Gallagher 3, Maher 3, Waller 2, Cruz 2, Borthwick
Halftime Score: West Valley 34, Foothill 25
Updated Records: West Valley (#4-North, #7-Calif) 14-4, Foothill 6-10
