Lancers lose 3rd straight; Spartans win
Although his boys basketball team dropped three straight games last week, St. Francis High coach Steve Filios isn't panicking.
"There's nothing wrong with the team," Filios said. "We just played some bigger, stronger and more athletic teams. We're playing hard - we just need to be more consistent."
The Lancers opened the week with a 69-56 loss to Jesuit of Sacramento in the Martin Luther King Holiday Classic.
Their next two losses came against fellow West Catholic Athletic League teams. St. Francis fell 70-63 to visiting Mitty Jan. 20 and then suffered a 57-38 setback at St. Ignatius Friday.
Filios threw an array of defenses at St. Ignatius, ranked No. 1 in the state, but nothing seemed to work. St. Ignatius had better luck defending St. Francis.
"They played good defense against us," Filios said. "We really had to work to get shots."
Top scorers for the Lancers (2-3 league, 15-4 overall) were Chase Lyman and Troy Bienemann with seven points apiece.
Mountain View rebounded from a 45-35 home loss to Fremont Jan. 19 by clobbering host Cupertino 64-46 last Thursday.
Four of Mountain View's five starters scored in double digits against Cupertino: Seth Greenstein (19 points), Nic Lustig (14), ShaSha Miri (13) and Brian Cordero (10).
"(Cupertino) played softer defense against us," Mountain View coach Jim Forthoffer said, "and we got some nice open looks on the perimeter."
The win kept the Spartans (4-1, 13-6) in a first-place tie with Gunn and Fremont in the SCVAL El Camino Division.
Gunn (12-4 overall) beat host Homestead 51-42 Jan. 19 and then edged rival Palo Alto 45-42 in a non-league game Saturday. Jamar Barnett scored 16 points against visiting Paly.
Homestead dropped to 1-4 in the El Camino Division after losing 32-29 last Thursday at Fremont. The Mustangs (4-14 overall) were led by Dat Lai's eight points.
Despite playing without three of its starters, Alta Vista beat visiting El Rancho 39-31 Jan. 20 in the South Bay Big Four opener for both teams. The Mountain View continuation school received 14 points from Dan Caballero and nine from David Due.
"They all played very well," Alta Vista coach John Figueroa said.