The Analy Flying Tigers earned what promises to be the first of
many basketball trophies this season, capturing first-place
hardware at the annual Red Brown Classic Tournament hosted by Drake
High School in San Anselmo.
Analy (5-0) took the tourney by storm, scoring impressive wins
over Albany, 75-51, Drake, 52-46, and Kennedy of Fremont in the
title game, 69-54. Earlier in the week, the Tigers turned back
visiting Hercules, 63-36.
Senior guard Max Fujii turned in a tremendous weekend of hoops,
garnering tournament MVP honors.
Although the Tigers are off to a 5-0 start in the early going,
the Analy brain-trust is far from satisfied by the team’s
performance so far.
“We’re still trying to come together as a team and I know we
have some good basketball to bring out,” reported head coach Brett
Page. “We’ve had lots of contributions from our bench as we’ve
rotated guys often. The team is working hard and learning how to
compete and we’re improving,” he added.
Fujii, the reigning Sonoma County League MVP and an All-State
selection last year, was nearly unstoppable at the Drake tourney,
pouring in 22, 23, and 31 points in successive games.
Also turning in a strong tournament effort was senior guard Eli
Alcantar, who scored a total of 39 points in his three outings,
chipping in key steals and rebounds to earn all-tourney honors.
Also landing on the all-tournament team was sophomore forward Geddy
Dukes, who tallied a combined 18 points for the weekend in a
break-out performance. Junior guard Jalen Gilbert was rock solid on
both ends of the floor for the Tigers.
On Dec. 7, the Tigers busted open a tight game against Hercules,
outscoring the Titans, 29-13 in the second and third quarters en
route to a 63-36 win. Fujii and Alcantar led the way with 25 and 11
points respectively.
Analy will hit the road this weekend (Dec. 16-18) for the St.
Hope Classic Tournament in Sacramento, which figures to provide a
good litmus test for the Tigers.
Lions compete at Rose City tourney
The El Molino Lions (1-5) have struggled to find their shooting
touch in the team’s first six pre-season games, averaging just
under 40 points per game on offense.
El Mo’s shooting woes were evident in all three outings at the
44th annual Rose City Tournament hosted by Cardinal Newman last
weekend, as the Lions fell to San Marin, 66-39, Kennedy of
Richmond, 45-34, and Petaluma, 52-48.
The Lion’s slow start can be directly traced to a lack of
practice time for their entire team, which was delayed due to a
protracted football season.
“We’re playing two quarters out of four right now and it’s
allowing teams to really gain advantages on the floor,” said El Mo
coach Eugene Patterson. “This team plays really hard but we just
haven’t been able to use each other on the floor offensively, as
our timing and use of the plays are off.”
The Lions had their hands full with eventual Rose City champion
San Marin in the opener, containing highly touted big-man Stuart
Wesconga for much of the first half before the Mustangs busted it
wide open after intermission.
Top scorers were Joe Douglass (7), Tyler Elderkin (7), Jordan
Nordby (6), Will Plaugher (5), Calvin Sandeen (5), Mike Crowder
(3), Taylor Davis (3), and Levi Karns (3).
Friday’s meeting with JFK had a disastrous start, as the Lions
dug themselves a 17-2 hole after one quarter. El Mo whittled away
at the deficit to trail, 34-27 after three, but the Eagles pulled
away down the stretch to notch an 11-point victory. Nordby (10
points), and Douglass (8) paced the attack for the Lions.
Saturday’s battle with SCL rival Petaluma was the most
frustrating of the tournament for El Molino, which erased a
seven-point first-quarter deficit to grab a 43-40 lead at the end
of three. The Trojans would outscore the Lions, 12-5 in the final
period to post a four-point win. Crowder and Douglass led the Lions
with 13 and 11 points respectively.
Nordby was named to the all-tournament team for El Molino.
