With up-and-down defense, shooting, Foothill posts big wins, bad losses

By Pete Borello, Town Crier Staff Writer

R. Alan Hwang/Special to the Town Crier Foothill’s Nikita Wallace goes up for a shot in traffic last week against Monterey. Wallace is one of the Owls’ top post players.

The Foothill College women’s basketball team has seen the enemy, and it is the Owls.

“We’re not losing to people - we’re beating ourselves,” Foothill coach Jody Craig said after her team sunk to 3-3 with a shocking home loss to Monterey Nov. 22. “We beat ourselves three times.”

The Owls unraveled in the closing seconds against Monterey (2-3), resulting in a 66-65 defeat Craig called “completely inexcusable.”

Foothill led by a point with 14 seconds left, then allowed Monterey’s best player to dribble through its full-court press and dish the ball to an open teammate for the game-winning layup.

“We didn’t stay in our lanes and do what we’re supposed to,” Craig said. “It resulted in a two-on-one (situation for Monterey), which was the worst possible scenario you could think of.”

The loss took some of the shine off the Owls’ previous game, a 60-58 victory over a solid San Jose City team. San Jose played man-to-man defense against host Foothill, though, and Monterey played zone - something that’s given the Owls fits all season.

“Once again, we came up against a zone and, for whatever reason, we froze,” Craig said.

If the Owls continue to zone out against zone, Craig expects them to see plenty of it from their future opponents. Of course, if Foothill starts knocking down outside shots, that could change.

“We’re not shooting the ball well,” the coach said. “I think it’s a confidence issue. I don’t think we have a plethora of shooters, per se, but we have as many as last year.”

The Owls went 23-8 last season, winning the Coast Conference North Division and advancing to the second round of the Northern California playoffs. Despite returning just three core players from that team - guards Mikail Price, Stephanie Dere and Brenae Perkins - Foothill entered this season with lofty expectations after showing well in summer league. A preseason poll of California community college coaches ranked Foothill second in Northern California and third in the state.

The Owls have since plummeted in the rankings, yet Craig said their goals haven’t.

“I always felt this team would take awhile to come together with so many new faces,” she said. “The goal is the same: get to the state tournament.”

Only eight teams will make it to the tourney, set for March 9-12 in Fresno’s Selland Arena. It’s doubtful Foothill will be there if it continues to shoot like it has, but Craig expects the offense to improve as the season wears on.

“We have to work through it,” the Owls’ 10th-year coach said. “I believe it’s going to be fine - it’s just a matter of when. It’s not like we’ve lost faith; it’s too early.”

Craig hasn’t lost faith in Dere, either, despite an early season shooting slump. The sophomore is considered Foothill’s best perimeter shooter, but she is averaging well below the 12 points per game she put up last season.

“We rely on her, like we did last year, and I think she feels she sometimes has to force things and do too much,” Craig said of the 5-foot-7 graduate of Aragon High.

Point guard Price, who like Dere was a first team all-conference selection a year ago, has struggled with consistency. Although the 5-8 Washington High product led Foothill in scoring against San Jose and Monterey (17 and 16 points, respectively), she’s been plagued by inconsistency.

“Mikail’s not playing up to her level; she goes in spurts,” Craig said. “Sometimes she gets super tentative.”

Then there’s Perkins, who has thrived against man defenses but not against zones. The 5-8 Pioneer High grad scored a season-high 12 points against San Jose and tallied just six vs. Monterey.

“She’s an extraordinary athlete in the right style of game,” Craig said. “She’s a slasher who’s outstanding in transition.”

Perhaps the emergence of freshmen Brittney Trujillo, Shavonnya Williams and Emily Kreutter can bolster the backcourt. At least, that’s what Craig is hoping for.

The 5-5 Trujillo, just rounding into form after suffering a knee injury during her senior year at Mitty High, “has a great outside shot,” Craig said.

The 5-7 Williams was asked to be a shoot-first point guard at Oak Grove High, where she earned all-league honors, and is learning how to be a more traditional point that sets up others.

“She’s very gifted and ultimately could be our best point guard,” Craig said. “Eventually, we’d like to put her at the point and Price at (shooting guard).”

Kreutter, a 5-8 guard from Mitty, isn’t a sharpshooter or a player who can break down the defense. She helps the Owls in other ways.

“She’s smart and a great defensive player who packs a lot of holes,” Craig said. “Her effort level is tremendous. She creates so much with her hustle. She just lacks offensive ability.”

Offense is something Craig would like to see more of from her post players. In the Owls’ first four games, “it wasn’t an emphasis to get the ball into the post,” she said, though that’s changing. Her post players combined for 24 points against San Jose.

Alyssa Bennett, Molly Lealao, Nikita Wallace and Shawn Killin have more size than last year’s group of posts, but Craig said they’re not as athletic or physical.

The 6-1 Bennett, a transfer from Bethany College, and the 5-11 Killin, a returner who played sparingly last season, have been hindered by back injuries. The left-handed Bennett is “more of a finesse player,” according to Craig, with a nice touch around the basket.

Lealao, a 5-10 freshman out of Carlmont High, “is the most consistent and most physical” of the posts, Craig said. The coach considers Wallace, a 6-0 transfer from Merced College, the post player with the most potential, “but she’s not consistent.”

Consistency seems to be the missing ingredient for the Owls thus far. Not just when it comes to shooting, but also defense.

Craig, who traditionally likes to play full-court defense, recently realized Foothill “may not be quick, athletic or fast enough to be a pressing style of team.” She hopes that as her players get more comfortable with the system and each other, they can press more.

The Owls may have their problems, but Craig sees plenty of potential.

“There are a lot of positive signs,” she said. “The kids so much want to do well and they put too much pressure on themselves. We need to relax and just play. When we do, I know we’ll take off.”

Craig saw more positives last weekend, as Foothill placed second in the Los Angeles Southwest Invitational to boost its record to 5-4. The Owls beat Los Angeles City 67-51 and Santa Monica 77-35 before falling 64-58 to the host team in Sunday’s final.

Price and Wallace made the all-tournament team. Price “had a phenomenal weekend,” Craig said, posting 52 points, 19 assists and 12 rebounds. Wallace totaled 28 points, 21 rebounds and eight blocks. And Dere showed signs of breaking out of her shooting slump, nailing five three-pointers against Santa Monica.

Foothill travels to Mission tonight for a 7 p.m. game.