Sobrato avenges loss to first-place Willow Glen with 50-43
victory Friday
SAN JOSE — Sobrato basketball coach Lawrence Crawford may want to bring a DVD of Friday’s game to the CIF-Central Coast Section playoff meeting.
It was the Bulldogs’ best performance of the season, Crawford said, and just what they needed to upset the first-place Willow Glen Rams, 50-43, in San Jose.
“It was a huge win for us, no question,” said Crawford, whose team moved to 19-5 overall and 9-3 in the Blossom Valley Athletic League Santa Teresa Division. “We maintained intensity and focus the whole way.”
Less than a month after suffering an 11-point home loss to Willow Glen that almost flat-lined their postseason hopes, the Bulldogs dealt one back Friday, capturing their fifth consecutive victory in the process. Sobrato remained in a three-way tie for second place in the division and on stable ground for possibly earning a at-large berth in the CIF-CCS Division II tournament.
The Bulldogs will end the regular season this week against the teams they are tied with. They will travel to Andrew Hill on Tuesday before hosting Independence on Friday. It is probable only one of them will advance to the postseason, pending Willow Glen beats lowly Silver Creek and Mount Pleasant to secure the division’s lone automatic berth.
“You have to be really careful now,” Crawford said. “It’s all about approaching each game the same and reinforcing our potential. You have to be able to operate under conditions of stress and intensity, and you have to do that for 32 minutes.”
Willow Glen (15-8 overall, 10-2 BVAL) may have the Santa Teresa championship locked up, but the Bulldogs gave the Rams a vengeful slap on the back; their first loss at home.
Ryan Williams hit four 3-pointers on the way to his game-high 17 points and six rebounds, and Chris Bradley scored a dozen as Sobrato worked its transition offense with authority — a stark contrast to its last meeting with Willow Glen.
“We had good focus on transition,” Crawford said. “We got the ball up and down the floor like we can.
“For recent weeks, we haven’t played a transition game. That’s part of the reason we’ve had to hang in there.”
The Bulldogs led 18-12 after the first quarter, but Willow Glen answered with 14 points in the second, tying the game 26-26 at halftime.
Crawford was impressed with the way his defense responded down the stretch.
“They kept fighting,” the fifth-year coach said of the Rams. “They wouldn’t go away. Primarily, it was the way our guys played on defense that made the difference.”
Sobrato received nine points, five assists and two steals from senior point guard Rauley Cambra, and Charley Bynum added five rebounds, three assists and three steals to go with 10 points. Chris and Bryan Bradley, twin shooting guards, helped hold 6-foot-4 standout Jimmy Renneke to 10 points.
“Size-wise, that was a battle,” Crawford said. “We did a great job limiting Renneke. He got away a couple times. Willow Glen showed a lot of character.”
Sobrato is 9-1 on the road heading into tonight’s battle at Andrew Hill. The Falcons, who edged the Bulldogs 51-49 in Sobrato Gym on Jan. 23, are coming off a 68-57 win over Mount Pleasant.
“From top to bottom, there’s not a big gap between talent in this league,” Crawford said. “So it’s not going to be an easy task to win out. You just tell your kids to take it one game at a time and hope they listen.”
