Leigh’s boys basketball team managed another strong performance on Thursday night against the visiting Santa Teresa Saints, winning 59-42. With the victory, the Longhorns improved to 9-9 overall, 2-2 in the BVAL-Mount Hamilton Division; the Saints dropped to 8-5, 1-3.
Leigh maintained a healthy lead throughout most of the contest, but after a 19-10 first quarter, Santa Teresa came storming back to close the gap to just four at halftime, with senior guard Tajai McGehee nailing a buzzer-beating three-point shot to make the score 30-26 at the half.
Leigh picked up the pace in the second half to put the game out of reach. Tenacious defensive play paved the way to victory, as the Longhorns allowed only 16 points in the second half.
Senior Jared Williams was a dominant defensive presence in the lane for the Longhorns, while fellow senior Kimo Francisco repeatedly contested Santa Teresa shots.
Francisco also proved to be a big threat on offense, going 4-of-7 inside the arc, 3-of-10 from 3-point range, and making 5-of-6 from the line. Also noteworthy was the play of Santa Teresa’s senior center Braydon Whitmarsh, who went 4-of-6 from the field and 4-of-6 from the free throw line.
After the game, Leigh coach Patrick Judge was clearly pleased with his team’s performance, not only on the day but also throughout the season.
“We have been in every game so far,” said Judge, “The games we have lost, we have lost by a combined total of 15 points. The team is playing smart, team basketball."
Of note was the high number of fouls committed by both teams, which included a pair of technical fouls, one committed by Santa Teresa’s Christian Paolenetti and the other by Francisco.
“We have to be better composed,” said Santa Teresa coach Mitch Priest after the game, “We are like a car without an engine right now, we have skilled players, but are lacking a team leader.”
Santa Teresa will look to find that leader next week, when they meet visiting Independence, while Leigh looks for more success at Willow Glen.
