The Diablo Foothill League is going to be absolutely ridiculous this year.
There are six truly excellent teams, two of which met on Friday in the championship game of El Cerrito’s 2nd Annual Gaucho Holiday Hoops Classic, with Acalanes emerging on top by a score of 63-60.
Friday’s game featured a little bit of everything: Big offensive runs, stout defense, lead changes and a close finish. The only thing missing was a jam-packed student section.
Sophomore guard Carter Mahaney played possibly his best game yet, scoring 25 points for Campolindo (8-2), but Acalanes had four players in double-figures, headlined by Ethan Fox’s 13-point effort off the bench.
The Cougars erased a 26-point Acalanes second quarter and a 10-point halftime deficit by outscoring the Dons 18-6 in the third, with Mahaney scoring 10 in the quarter, but Acalanes (9-3) scored the first eight points of the fourth quarter as part of a 14-2 run that ultimately decided the game.
Ian Archer’s pair of free throws with 6:47 left gave the Dons a 47-46 lead that they would not relinquish, and Archer followed with a 3-pointer to stretch the lead to four. Aidan McNamara stretched the lead to six on a drive to the hoop with five minutes to play. After a pair of Will Cummins free throws got Campolindo back within four points, Ryan Nall scored on consecutive possessions to put Acalanes up by eight for the first time since early in the third quarter.
A 7-1 Campolindo run, capped off by a Cummins 3-pointer, got the Cougars back within two points with 1:01 to go, but a McNamara block with 15 seconds left sealed the game.
McNamara was named to the All-Tournament Team, and Gavin Shipp was named MVP. Archer and Robby Rowell each finished with 11 points, and Nall scored 10, including eight in the fourth quarter.
Cummins finished with 11 for Campolindo, and Mahaney was unsurprisingly named to the All-Tournament Team.
The teams are scheduled to meet on January 12 at Campolindo and on February 2 at Acalanes.
Tournament host El Cerrito (4-6) finished in third place with a 52-42 win over Vanden. Jacob Smith scored 18 for the Gauchos and Derrick Langford, who made the All-Tournament Team, finished with 10. Vanden (6-4) got 10 points from Teiano Hardee.
In the consolation championship, Newark Memorial blew past Deer Valley, 66-47. The Cougars led 34-18 at halftime had four players in double-figures, including freshman Nay’veon Reed, who finished with 10 points. Isaiah Cabrera led Newark Memorial (3-7) with 13 points. Deer Valley (6-3) got 10 points from Dubem Boardman.
