WALNUT CREEK, Calif. – The way the Diablo Athletic League Foothill Division is stacked, you can expect a lot of tough, back-and-forth battles. Miramonte and host Northgate put on just such a show on Tuesday night, with Northgate topping the Mats 60-54.
Brady Cook went 9-for-10 from the charity stripe in the fourth quarter, and 12-for-14 overall as part of a 14-point performance for Northgate. Thayne Merrill also scored 14 for the Broncos, while Luke Joseph led the way with 16 points and eight rebounds. Dylan Chung had a spirited third quarter and finished with 10 points and 12 rebounds. Dylan Golan rounded out the starting five with four points and five assists.
“We knew coming in tonight it was going to be a fight,” Northgate coach Michael Shaughnessy stated. “I kind of used the Mike Tomlin phrase against the Chiefs where he told his guys ‘Don’t blink.’ We couldn’t blink because they were going to try to push the ball and play a fast-paced game. For us we tried to do the opposite and play a slower-paced game.”
“They got a lot of second-chance points, that’s the game,” Miramonte coach Chris Lavdiotis said. “Tonight we had to kind of swim upstream a little bit. [Northgate] got a lot of offensive rebounds in various ways.”
Northgate (14-2, 4-0 DAL) led 21-10 after a quarter of play, closing out that period on an 11-5 run. The Broncos made four three-pointers in the first but didn’t strike again from deep until early in the fourth. In the second, they had a hard time finding the bottom of the net, but led 27-20 before the Matadors closed the half strong and sent the teams to the locker room tied at 28.
Northgate had a 42-39 advantage to start the fourth. Miramonte (15-2, 2-1 DAL) kept it close throughout most of the period. With about five minutes to go, Breznikar faked a three-point attempt, then drove in for a layup to make it 45-43 Northgate. Cook made a pair of free throws, Frye converted a layup off a Brezikar assist, and Joseph wriggled in the lane for a banker to again keep Miramonte at bay.
With Northgate up by four and 1:17 left, Cook was fouled on an inbounds play and converted both attempts. Miramonte then missed a couple of three-pointers on the other end, and Joseph sank a pair of free throws to help clinch the game.
Cook said the key to his success at getting to the free throw line was “staying patient” and added, “We really pride ourselves on our defense. That’s been our goal all year, to hold great teams like Miramonte to as little points as we can. It’s a group effort for us.”
“The fact that we were able to come out with a win where we don’t finish or shoot the ball extremely well, that’s a credit to the toughness and the group that we have and learning how to close out games and win,” Shaughnessy remarked.
Just like Northgate, Miramonte is senior-heavy and relied almost entirely on its starters (the Mats had no points from the bench, while the Broncos had just a field goal). James Frye entered the game as the team’s leading scorer with 18.3 points per game and stayed true to form with 18 along with five rebounds and two assists. Tyler Dutto chipped in 16 points and four assists, and Caden Breznikar tallied 14 points, eight rebounds, and three assists.
Despite attendance limited by COVID protocols, energy in the building was high with a full dance team and stomping feet in the stands to cheer on the home team. The Broncos and Mats both entered the game highly ranked in the NCS and in their respective section divisions. Northgate had already knocked off Clayton Valley Charter and College Park at home, and Acalanes on the road. Miramonte faced its stringiest opponent in league play so far following wins versus College Park and at Las Lomas.
“I was telling everybody in the summer that we were going to be a really good team,” Lavdiotis commented. “I think the togetherness the team has shown has been better than expected. They are so connected. And they are so coachable. And they care. There’s a huge amount of trust between the players and players and coaches. And so all those ingredients are there for success.”