PIEDMONT – There was never a question of if Menlo had talent. They’re certainly one of the top teams in the entire CCS. Doubts surrounding the Knights referred to depth, but their seven-man rotation showed stamina and composure in an impressive 62-47 win over the Mission Bears on Saturday afternoon at the Piedmont MLK Classic, a game in which they never trailed.
Menlo’s trio of Riley Woodson, Joe Foley and Thomas Brown led the way, headlined by Woodson’s 24 points and 13 rebounds, including 10 points apiece in the first and third quarters along with an 8-for-9 effort at the line.
“He wants to have a 20-20 game,” said head coach Keith Larsen.
Though the Knights had picked up some impressive wins in nonleague play, most notably beating Palo Alto on December 8, Mission presented superior athleticism, depth and relentless pressure. None of those things deterred Menlo as the Knights led by as much as 18 during a 22-10 third quarter and never led by less than 11 in the game’s final 12 minutes.
Mission (7-8) got 24 points from Ben Knight. He was also the Bears’ lead scorer against Stuart Hall, making it two straight Saturdays where Knight has led the way against a team called the Knights. He scored 11 in the second quarter, including a 3-pointer just before the halftime buzzer, to cut the Menlo lead to 33-29 at the half.
The Knights took charge in the third quarter as Brown scored seven of his 16 points, including a 3-pointer off a Foley steal and assist to widen the lead to 46-33. That sequence started a 12-4 run, capped off by a Foley and-1 and a basket in the paint from Woodson to bring the lead all the way to 55-37, the largest advantage Menlo (12-1) would have on the day.
“We changed defenses and went to some 1-3-1 zone, which we hadn’t really done all year,” said Larsen.
Mission did get the final two points of the third from Knight and scored the first six of the fourth, with a pair of Knight free throws trimming the lead to 11, but Kevin Chen scored on the following possession and a pair of Woodson free throws brought the lead back to 15, and things were hardly in doubt from there.
Though Mission rotates through 10 men and Menlo typically only uses seven, the Knights showed their physical ability to keep up with Mission’s pace and spread the floor to break the press.
The method in which Menlo took care of the Bears shows that the Knights, a near lock for the CCS Open Division, can handle an up-tempo style. While Mission is a unique opponent in terms of style of play, the Open Division will be filled with WCAL teams that put on intense defensive pressure and teams that, like Mission, play deep lineups.
In other action at Piedmont, Campolindo won every quarter and defeated Burlingame 66-45, Pinole Valley beat Encinal 68-64 in overtime and Piedmont cruised past Burton, 79-43.
