If non-league compet-ition is designed to reveal a team
’s character then the Live Oak boys basketball team has plenty.
The Acorns won consec-utive games that they could easily have given
up in en route to claiming the consolation championship of Los
Gatos High’s Wildcat Shootout.
If non-league compet-ition is designed to reveal a team’s character then the Live Oak boys basketball team has plenty.
The Acorns won consec-utive games that they could easily have given up in en route to claiming the consolation championship of Los Gatos High’s Wildcat Shootout.
Live Oak (5-1 overall) claimed the title on Saturday with a 63-55 victory over Saratoga in overtime.
The Acorns saw Saratoga tie the game on a last-second shot in regulation before dominating the overtime period to pull away with the win.
“I have to give our team a lot of credit for hanging in there,” Live Oak coach Brett Paolucci said. “That (last-second shot) was a real downer but we didn’t give up.”
Senior guard Joel Wright and senior forward Steve Conner shared scoring honors for the Acorns with 12 points each.
Wright, who scored a team-high 36 points in three tourney games, was named to the all-tournament team for Live Oak.
But if ever an overtime win in a tourney finale was anti-climactic, this one was, coming as it did hard on the heels of an even more exciting victory in the consolation semifinals.
In that game, Live Oak trailed Armijo 51-44 with 1:26 to play before rallying.
Conner hit a 3-pointer and another bucket, while Armijo missed the front end of consecutive 1-and-1 free throw chances, to pull the Acorns within 51-49.
Then, after another missed Armijo free throw, Wright hit the game-winning 3-pointer off a long rebound with 13 seconds to play.
“A lot had to go right for us,” Paolucci said. “We hit the shots we had to. It was exciting for us and I was excited for Joel.”
Wright finished with a team-high 18 points.
The 52-51 victory boosted the Acorns into the consolation finale against Saratoga, a team they had faced three straight years in the tourney.
Live Oak struggled against the Saratoga press early in the finale and trailed 9-5 after the first quarter.
But the Acorns led 23-22 at the half and built a 10-point lead in the third quarter before Saratoga rallied in the final quarter.
In its first-round game, Live Oak suffered its first loss of the season to highly touted Leigh.
The Acorns kept the game close until midway through the fourth quarter when the Longhorns pulled away for a 48-37 victory.
Conner led Live Oak in scoring with nine points, while Doug Porras added seven and Wright had six.
