LIVERMORE — The finale of NorCal Sports TV’s All-NorCal Games was an absolute thriller, with Washington-bound Elijah Hardy’s last-second layup making the difference as the Bay Area defeated Sacramento 116-114.
“We have some bad blood between the Bay and Sac, going back and forth about who’s better,” said Hardy. “Obviously the Bay’s better. We’ve got some dogs in our side.”
Hardy’s high school career ended at the hands of a Sacramento team, as Sheldon defeated Bishop O’Dowd in the Northern California Open Division Championship, but Hardy got a bit of revenge on Sunday night.
In fact, the game was supposed to be coached by the combatants of that Open Division game, with Sheldon head coach Joey Rollings leading the Sacramento team. Lou Richie was slated to coach the Bay Area side, but last-minute complications led to Alameda head coach Cameron Quick serving in his place.
The crowd at Las Positas College was wowed throughout the night, not only with highlight-reel dunks and offense, but also with high-intensity play at both ends, including a tremendous one-on-one battle that developed in the fourth quarter between two excellent unsigned guards, Salesian’s James Akinjo and Capital Christian’s Zach Chappell.
“It’s great knowing that you don’t have to worry about the defense and let those two players take care of themselves,” said Quick. “To watch that, that’s what you come to these games for.”
Akinjo finished with 24 points, while Chappell had 16.
Woodcreek’s Chris Cagle finished with 17 points, including back-to-back threes midway through the fourth quarter to give Sacramento the lead.
Harvard-bound Mason Forbes led Sacramento with 24 points.
Nathan Robinson, who transferred from Sacred Heart Cathedral to Las Lomas before his senior year, scored a game-high 36 points for the Bay Area, including seven 3-pointers. One of those came from the top of the key as the first half ended on a 15-0 Bay Area run to take a 58-50 lead.
The Bay Area closed the game on a 10-0 run to win it, with Akinjo sinking a 3-pointer to tie it with 28 seconds left. Sacramento got an offensive rebound off a miss with nine seconds left, but Jonathan Ned (Heritage) poked the ball loose. San Francisco commit Dylan Belquist found a streaking Hardy in the frontcourt, and though Hardy initially lost the ball, he regained control and laid it in as time expired to give his team the victory.
