This has been a golden age of sorts for the Analy Flying Tiger
basketball program and its fans, enjoying a tremendous run of
success during a two-year span that has produced a 56-10 record
under coach Brett Page.
The amazing run has included a pair of unbeaten Sonoma County
League championships, a North Coast Section Division-3 title in
2009, and two straight trips to the CIF Nor Cal State Championship
Tournament.
Although great results can produce inflated expectations, Analy
fans can and should expect the success to continue this season.
“Our goal has always been to get our program to a point where we
would be able to play the best teams in the state,” said Tiger
coach Brett Page. “We want to compete at the highest level. This
will be a tough year for us as we learn what that really means — to
compete against the best teams in the pre-season.”
The Tigers (1-0) are already out of the gate quickly, turning
back Division-1 power Franklin of Elk Grove on Saturday, 63-55.
Analy graduated eight players from last year’s 27-3 squad, most
notably all-league guard Kevin Aronis, one of the most prolific
scorers in Tiger history. The good news is that the team returns
eight players this season, including third-year senior guard Max
Fujii, an All-State selection last year and among the all-time
great shooters in school history.
In two stellar seasons, Fujii has scored 992 points and nailed
169 three-pointers. His mark of 87 treys last year was a school
single-season record, shattering the mark previously owned by
Aronis set a year earlier. On Saturday, he joined Analy’s
exclusive, 1,000-point scoring club and is poised for yet another
monster season.
Other key returnees for the Tigers include senior third-year
guard Eli Alcantar, junior guard Jalen Gilbert, senior forward
Raffi Dick, junior guard Ryan Willis, and sophomore forwards
Mohannad Halaweh, and Geddy Link.
Moving up from last year’s JV squad are sophomore guards Gabe
Greenberg-Pines and Josiah Sorensen, and junior forwards Matt
Anderson and Nathan Molony-Benjamin.
“We will probably have three seniors, which means we will be
inexperienced and young,” noted Page. “But it means we are going to
get better and have some fun young talent.”
Scheduling notes
Analy’s tough pre-league schedule continues this week with the
Foundation Game at El Cerrito (Nov. 30 after press time), and home
against visiting Hercules next Tuesday, Dec. 7 (7 p.m.). The Tigers
will participate in upcoming tournaments that include the Red Brown
Classic at Drake (Dec. 8-11), Sacramento tourney (Dec. 16-18), and
the Max Prep Tournament in San Diego (Dec. 27-30). Analy will open
the SCL campaign against visiting El Molino on Jan. 5.
El Mo hoping for
competitive season
The Lions figure to be vastly improved this year, and shouldn’t
have to wait long to surpass last year’s win total of two games. If
you liked the football team, then you’ll love the basketball squad,
since nearly the entire roster is comprised of players moving over
from the gridiron.
Head coach Eugene Patterson is back for another season, brimming
with optimism in what should be an exciting year.
“Our goals are very simple, which speaks to the humble nature of
this group,” said Patterson, assisted by returning coach Jim Carey,
and Frank Lambert. “First, we want to win as many games as possible
by playing our hearts out and remaining competitive each night.
Then, hopefully make the SCL playoffs as a top four team in league
to keep a possible dream of making the NCS alive.”
El Mo is a team built on athleticism. The list of returning
players include starting point guard Jordan Nordby, senior
three-year shooting guard Joe Douglass, two-year junior small
forward Will Plaugher, senior power forward Tyler Elderkin, 6’ 7”
senior center Calvin Sandeen, and sharp-shooting guard Michael
Crowder.
Moving up from the JV squad of a year ago are a strong group of
juniors that include Chet Lambert, John Carlson, Nate Palmer, Kyle
Brinson, Rosendo Lopez, and Taylor Davis. Seniors Levi Karns and
possibly Michael Pierson will be joining the team after
football.
“We’re very optimistic about this year as we have worked very
hard for the last four years to get these guys to a competitive
level of skill and effort,” noted Patterson. “This is truly a
special group of El Molino seniors. They have all the qualities you
look for; dedication, enthusiasm, teamwork and they are extremely
coachable.”
The Lions will play a pre-season schedule loaded with Division-4
games that will feature Cardinal Newman, and Lower Lake, Piedmont,
and St Helena. Upcoming tournaments will include Rose City
Tournament (Dec. 9-11), and the Sonoma County Classic (Dec.
28-30).
