Wearing a padded face guard à la Rip Hamilton, Sobrato center
Karl Johnisee is the Big Man in the Iron Mask in nickname and
deed.
Johnisee broke his nose at practice last week when a teammate’s
elbow caught him in the face during a drill. That didn’t stop the
6-foot, 5-inch sophomore from carrying his team to a moral boost
Tuesday, a 69-53 loss to visiting Leigh that for three quarters had
the makings of a major upset in Mount Hamilton Division boys
basketball.
MORGAN HILL
Wearing a padded face guard à la Rip Hamilton, Sobrato center Karl Johnisee is the Big Man in the Iron Mask in nickname and deed.
Johnisee broke his nose at practice last week when a teammate’s elbow caught him in the face during a drill. That didn’t stop the 6-foot, 5-inch sophomore from carrying his team to a moral boost Tuesday, a 69-53 loss to visiting Leigh that for three quarters had the makings of a major upset in Mount Hamilton Division boys basketball.
Johnisee had a career night with 15 points and 10 rebounds, helping the Bulldogs stay alive until Leigh pulled away with a 24-2 scoring run in the second half.
The mask may have helped.
“I’m serious. I think he should keep wearing it,” teammate Travis Saenz said with a smile after his 11-point effort. “I think that mask was a little intimidating.”
Johnisee knew he needed to deliver if the Bulldogs were going to have any chance against the defending league champions, who returned three starters from a 24-5 team that was one away from regionals. The Longhorns ripped Sobrato 66-37 in the Blossom Valley Athletic League Tournament quarterfinals in 2011.
Leigh’s frontcourt featured senior wings Trevor Peterson (6 feet 4) and Scotty Guyon (6 feet 1) and 6-foot-5 sophomore forward Jared Williams, plus three reserves measuring 6 feet 5, 6 feet 4 and 6 feet 2. Each big is athletic and skilled.
“They’re good, they’re strong, and I just had to try and overpower them,” Johnisee said. “We just felt like we had to have a big night from everybody.”
Johnisee came through at several key moments during Sobrato’s seventh consecutive loss. He battled for rebounds in traffic against as many as three Leigh players. He drew charges. He completed two three-point plays in the first half, when Leigh was called for 17 fouls to the Bulldogs’ three, and scored six of his eight points in the second quarter during the final two minutes. Sobrato completed a 9-3 run to pull even, 36-36, at halftime.
Johnisee let out a yell after following two missed layups with a successful third try, as Devin Miller fouled him late in the second quarter.
“He was just huge,” SHS coach Lee Washington said. “I challenged him to have a double-double, and … he had 15 points and was definitely helping us out on those rebounds.”
This past week Washington also challenged sophomore Chris Turner to step up at forward. Turner did so Tuesday with 11 points, five rebounds and two assists. He wasn’t shy to draw contact in the lane.
“Chris was just hitting open shots and driving and cutting, just doing his strong points,” said Saenz, a senior guard. “This just shows all the younger players what they’re capable of doing.”
For Leigh (9-4, 2-1) the win was a testament to mental fortitude. Coach Patrick Judge and his players kept their cool in the first half as the Bulldogs poured in 16 points from the free-throw line, including seven of their first nine points in the second quarter while in a double bonus. The Longhorns built steady leads of up to 10 the hard way, creating open shots along the perimeter with motion.
The Bulldogs did get their hands dirty, though, as evident in their 14 offensive rebounds.
“Sitting on the bench for an extended amount of time helped refocus them,” Judge said of his players. “We talked about it at halftime – play solid, don’t do anything outside your comfort zone. Everybody’s been in foul trouble before.”
Sobrato (2-11, 0-3), which shot 21 for 29 from the line, legitimized the upset threat late in the second quarter with a five-point trip. Saenz sank a jumper and made a layup off a steal by Jerry Jacob, and Johnisee added a free throw to trim Leigh’s lead to 33-32.
“Travis Saenz did a really good job penetrating the seams in our zone,” Judge said. “They played hard. They went to the basket hard. They don’t play like a 2-11 club.”
After the teams traded baskets to start the third quarter Leigh ignited its big run by turning up the pressure on defense. Peterson hit a jumper, stole the inbound pass and laid the ball in to put Leigh ahead, 46-45, for good. Kyle Morrison followed with a nice drive off another takeaway. Williams’ free throw with eight-tenths of a second left made it 49-45.
Sobrato continued turning the ball over at a rapid pace in the fourth quarter, allowing the Longhorns to score 17 of the first 19 points.
“We worked hard tonight, then just fell apart mentally in the second half,” Turner said.
“They have great D,” Saenz added. “They know how to work that defense. I remember it from last year; they ran it just as good.”
Peterson collected 16 points and 10 rebounds, Kimo Francisco added 14 points, and Morrison scored 15 on 7-of-11 shooting to go with seven rebounds, four steals and three assists for Leigh.
Sobrato senior Ben Vater totaled 12 points, eight rebounds and two assists.
With their heads a little bit higher the Bulldogs will resume hunting for their first win of the new year at 7 p.m. Thursday against visiting Piedmont Hills.
“The thing is we only have a few guys like Travis, who’s a third-year varsity player,” Washington said. “Most of our guys are coming along with experience. We’re doing a lot of situational stuff in practice now, so they’ll be ready to finish next time.”
