Local teams may not have much size, but they're all shooting for playoffs
By Pete Borello, Town Crier Staff Writer
 R. Alan Hwang/Special to the Town Crier Los Altos High’s Christina Ngo, left, and Mountain View’s Laura Brigham leap for the jump ball in the season opener. |
If the ruler ruled in basketball, the area high schools would be in trouble. Not one of the eight boys and girls teams the Town Crier covers has a player who intimidates simply by having to duck to get through the gym door.
An examination of the team rosters reveals there aren’t many players taller than 6 feet and not one over 6-4 competing in this area.
But as almost any basketball coach will tell you, the measuring stick isn’t the only measure that determines on-court success. Heart can trump height, speed can conquer size and wits can overcome wingspan.
The local teams are all out to find a way to stand tall in their leagues - and not one of them considers it a stretch to make the Central Coast Section playoffs.
Here’s how the teams stack up for 2006-07:
BOYS
Los Altos High School
League: Santa Clara Valley Athletic League El Camino Division.
Coac James Reilly, second year.
Last season: Fourth in division; 7-17 overall.
Key returnees: C Brett Perrotta; PG Ike Wilson; SF Alex O’Connor; SG Christian Obando.
Top newcomers: PF Erik Johnson; SF Ben Kohl, SG Justin Arcune and PG Kenny Peterman
Outlook: Los Altos’ success in football may hinder that of the basketball team, at least early on. Three players expected to play major minutes - Kohl, Arcune and Peterman - are just joining the Eagles after helping the football team to the CCS semifinals. Reilly hopes their winning ways rub off on his squad, which has missed the playoffs two out of the last three years. There may be bigger players in the division, but Perrotta (6-foot-4) and Johnson (6-3) make a formidable interior duo that the coach considers the strength of his team. Reilly also expects big things from guards Wilson and Obando, whom he considers the most improved player, and talented wing O’Connor. The coach is counting on Los Altos to shoot better this year and improve defensively. Reilly’s major concerns are a lack of quickness and depth. If the Eagles can stay healthy, there’s little reason to believe they won’t meet their goals of finishing in the top half of the division and making the playoffs.
Coach’s quote: “We’ve got a lot of guys who can be good, but they haven’t played varsity before and need to build confidence. It may take a little bit of time, but we’ll be better than last year.”
Next game: 8 p.m. today vs. Gunn at the Burlingame Tournament.
Mountain View High School
League: SCVAL El Camino Division.
Coac Bob Heckmann, seventh year.
Last season: Sixth in SCVAL De Anza Division; 10-18 overall; lost in CCS Division II quarterfinals.
Key returnees: C Jesse Griffin; C Eric Jenkins; C Mike Hess; PG Brandon Scott; SG Ricky Appler.
Top newcomers: SF Jordan White; PG/SG Bryan Sana; SG Edwin Jeng; G Arthur Washington.
Outlook: Mountain View’s leading scorer the past three seasons, Terence Willis, has graduated, leaving the team in a scoring quandary. There is no go-to guy this year, according to Heckmann, who expects the Spartans to score by committee. Post player Griffin and shooter Appler will be counted on to provide the most points. The 6-3 Griffin can play inside and out, and the coach considers him the player who has improved most since last year. Add Hess and Jenkins, both 6-4, and Mountain View should have enough size to be effective in the paint. When the Spartans go big, however, Heckmann said they won’t have the speed to run or press the way he would like. Many of the team’s best athletes are guards, including juniors Sana, Washington and Jeng, whom the coach lists as his most versatile player. Dropping into the El Camino Division should prove beneficial to a team that struggled in its two seasons in the rugged De Anza and graduated four of its top six players.
Coach’s quote: “My focus is to get us to play as well as we can play. Where we end up, I don’t know, but I certainly feel we should be in the hunt for the division title.”
Next game: 3:30 p.m. today vs. Terra Nova at the Burlingame Tournament.
St. Francis High School
League: West Catholic Athletic League.
Coac Steve Filios, 15th year.
Last season: Last in league; 13-15 overall; lost in CCS Division III quarterfinals.
Key returnees: G/F Robert Bow; SG Omar Bourgoub; F Patrick Leiva; PF Steven Kadash; PF Conor Broom; PG Preston Marguet.
Top newcomers: PF Shawn Grant; G Sam Scudellari.
Outlook: St. Francis’ recent trend of being small but scrappy continues. Filios believes this year’s Lancers may be the shortest team in a stout league - his tallest starters are Kadash and Grant at 6-3 - but he’s hopeful their energy and aggressiveness can compensate for that. Bow, coming off a breakout season, is expected to again lead the squad in scoring. He, Bourgoub and Grant, a sophomore transfer from Evergreen, are St. Francis’ most gifted players, according to the coach. Filios calls the 6-1 Leiva, who has gotten bigger and stronger, the team’s “stabilizing force.” Broom handles the offensive boards well off the bench, while Marguet excels as an on-the-ball defender. Look for the Lancers to run - but not gun - in their up-tempo offense. Filios has 14 players and said he’s not afraid to play any one of them. Rebounding may be a problem for this team, particularly in league, yet the coach is confident St. Francis has enough positives to contend for a postseason berth.
Coach’s quote: “On paper, people must wonder how we’re going to compete in the WCAL with all those big and athletic teams. But I see the glass as half full - this team plays with a lot of heart and likes to play together.”
Next game: 3:30 p.m. Thursday vs. San Lorenzo Valley at the Santa Cruz Dad’s Tournament.
Pinewood School
League: Private Schools Athletic League.
Coac Andrew Slayton, fifth year.
Last season: Sixth in league; 15-12 overall; lost in CCS Division V semifinals.
Key returnees: C Michel Nofal; PF Nick Fraioli; SG Tyler Mosher; PG John Capin; F Scott Jue.
Top newcomers: G/F Parker Fields; G/F Connor Whitlock.
Outlook: Pinewood’s surprising playoff run last season has been a great motivator for this season, according to Slayton, who said his players worked hard over the summer to get better. The coach expects great things from this group, which includes seven seniors. Slayton said Nofal, the tallest Panther at 6-4, has made the biggest strides and will be a key contributor. He works alongside the 6-3 Fraioli, who will also be counted on for inside points and offensive rebounds. The backcourt returns intact, with Mosher providing scoring from the paint to the perimeter and the steady Capin running the deliberate offense. Slayton considers Jue to be his best defender. The coach said additions Fields and Whitlock - a junior and sophomore, respectively - are capable shooters. Pinewood’s biggest challenge may be its league, which Slayton said is extremely balanced and has no down teams. If the Panthers can take better care of the ball and play defense like last season when they led the PSAL in points allowed, they should be right in the thick of things.
Coach’s quote: “This year we want to do better in league, compete for the title and see what we can do in the playoffs. We have a long list of goals to pick off along the way.”
Next game: 6:30 p.m. Friday vs. Bentley.
GIRLS
Los Altos High School
League: SCVAL El Camino Division.
Coac Scott Green, first year.
Last season: Fifth in division; 5-16 overall.
Key returnees: F Emily Lippe; SG Christina Ngo; C Kristen Bailey; F Justine Aycott.
Top newcomers: PG Kayla Polanco; PG Mae Santiago; SF Ann Schneider; C Sarah Nolet; PF Camilla Tullin.
Outlook: Los Altos enters the year with optimism, despite a 6-39 record over the past two seasons. Green said his players “don’t have a loser mentality” and have high expectations. They’re talking playoffs. The coach is preaching patience, however, conceding the Eagles have a lot of work to do. His first priority is to make Los Altos a dominant defensive team that pressures the ball, then develop its motion offense. The Eagles return four players, led by Lippe. The junior was the squad’s top player a year ago - leading Los Altos in scoring and rebounding - and should retain that status if she can overcome a bothersome knee. Ngo is a nice complement to Lippe, Green said, providing quickness, defensive tenacity and shooting. Bailey may be an undersized center at 5-7, but the coach said the junior is the team’s best rebounder because of her physical, high-energy play. Nolet’s athleticism and size (5-10) should help inside, though the senior’s time will be limited due to her dueling soccer season. Sharpshooter Schneider “has been a huge surprise,” Green said. Polanco and Santiago are both quick ball-handlers, yet their inexperience shows.
Coach’s quote: “We’d like to win more games than last year, improve as the season goes on and play great defense. Basically, we want to get better.”
Next game: Thursday at the Los Altos Winter Classic.
Mountain View High School
League: SCVAL De Anza Division.
Coac Judy Auclair, third year.
Last season: Second in SCVAL El Camino Division; 17-11 overall; lost CCS Division III opener.
Key returnees: PG/SF Laura Brigham; PF Angelica Williams; PG Pauline Regala.
Top newcomers: F/G Natalie Warmbrodt; PF Aly Greenberg; C Sarah Hess.
Outlook: Much to Auclair’s dismay, Mountain View has been elevated to the De Anza Division after graduating seven players - four of them all-leaguers. The Spartans are not without talent, though, as all-leaguer Brigham returns, Williams is getting healthy and 10 players from the one-loss JV team are on board. Brigham, whom Auclair said had a good offseason, will spend most of her time at point - at least until Regala returns from a hand injury that may sideline her until January. Williams, out for most of last season with a knee injury, is working toward becoming the aggressive post player she was once - and the team needs. The Spartans’ other inside threats include Warmbrodt, an improving junior who is quick and physical, and promising freshman Hess, the team’s tallest player at 6-1. Mountain View should be able to rebound with many of the teams in its new division, but its lack of outside shooting could be a major hindrance. If they improve their fundamentals, an area Auclair is stressing, the Spartans should make a run at CCS.
Coach’s quote: “Nobody should count us out. We won’t win the league, but we’ll win. If we get lucky, we could be in the top three.”
Next game: 6 p.m. today vs. the host team in the Terra Nova Tournament.
St. Francis High School
League: WCAL.
Coac Ashley Hill, fourth year.
Last season: Seventh in league; 2-21 overall.
Key returnees: SG Kelsey Houlihan; SG Jacque Jenna; PF Kristin Montanari; PG/SG Rachel Gate; SF Kimberley Benedetti.
Top newcomers: C Aly Geppert; PG Brittany Taylor.
Outlook: It turns out not making the playoffs last year has only made St. Francis stronger this year. The Lancers missed CCS after forfeiting 10 wins for not filing paperwork on a player who transferred in. It has taught them you can’t take the playoffs for granted, Hill said, and the players are working harder than ever to get back there. St. Francis has two capable point guards in Gate and Taylor, while Houlihan is the team’s best shooter “hands down,” according to Hill. The coach considers Montanari the most improved Lancer, and her rebounding, post game and defense are critical to the team’s success. Geppert, a 6-1 transfer from Pinewood, brings “an all-state attitude,” Hill said, and is fitting right in. Geppert played a key role on a Pinewood team that claimed a state title last season. St. Francis isn’t favored to win the formidable WCAL - which features the likes of Mitty, Sacred Heart Cathedral and St. Ignatius - but having eight returnees and two talented new players should put them in contention.
Coach’s quote: “We have four or five definite scoring threats when they get the basketball. It’s going to be tough to scout us and the key to our team this year.”
Next game: 7 p.m. today at Piedmont Hills.
Pinewood School
League: PSAL.
Coac Doc Scheppler, 12th year.
Last season: League champion; 24-9 overall; CCS, NorCal and state Division V champs.
Key returnees: G Sami Field-Polisso; G Grace Beck; PG Tika Koshiyama-Diaz; F Lindsay Nickel.
Top newcomers: PF Helena Borland; G Lauren Taniguchi; G/F Rachel Marty.
Outlook: The Panthers have won the state crown two years in a row, but making it three will be a daunting task. Liz Altmaier and Hannah Lippe have graduated, while fellow all-leaguer Aly Geppert transferred out. That leaves more of the burden on league MVP Field-Polisso, who made a smooth transition to the point after Koshiyama-Diaz suffered a knee injury last year. Both will start, sharing the point-guard duties, and Scheppler said they rank among the best backcourt duos in the CCS. Beck is a 3-point specialist the coach is encouraging to take more shots. Pinewood is relying on Nickel, a 5-10 sophomore, and Borland, a 5-11 exchange student from Denmark, to make up for the loss of Geppert. Scheppler said both are hard-working players who have a soft touch around the basket. Promising freshmen Taniguchi and Marty are the top reserves on a team lacking depth. The coach is confident, however, that the Panthers’ shooting and defensive prowess will allow them to make another run at the state title.
Coach’s quote: “I really like our team - they’re fun to coach. When we get our nerves in check, we’ll be fine.”
Next game: 3:30 p.m. today vs. Burlingame at the Notre Dame-Belmont Tournament.
