Vintage gains double-digit advantage in second half, doesn’t look back to beat Napa in first Big Game
By Kyle Foster
Twitter: @NapaKyle @NapaSportsNews
If there’s one constant in the Big Game rivalry, it’s to never trust the records.
In the first Big Game boys basketball of the year, Vintage was able to beat Napa 71-62.
According to Napa High head coach Joel Garcia, defensive breakdowns cost them in this one.
“Our defense broke down,” he explained. “Lack of communication, but I was confident in our guys to make that quick adjustment. We worked on that all week.”
The Crushers (7-0 overall, 6-0 Vine Valley Athletic League) came out right away and jumped out to a quick 11-3 lead. However, Napa (1-5, 1-5 VVAL) ran off a 10-3 run to get back into the game at the end of the first quarter.
“It was just us encouraging each other,” Garcia said of the run they made to get back in the game in the first quarter. “Our bench came out strong and was clapping for us and then once one of our guys gets going, we support them no matter what.”
“I’m not trying to be disrespectful to Napa High, but this is the same exact scenario we’ve had every single game this season,” Vintage head coach Ben Gongora emphasized. “We get a lead. Then, we let it down.”
Out of the half, Vintage was able to extend the lead to 14 on the heels of a 16-3 run.
Leading the way for Vintage was Jackson Corley. He had a team-high 21 points and four rebounds.
Josh McCormick added 12 points and nine rebounds. Logan Nothmann added ten points and brought in three rebounds as well.
“A lot of that is game preparation,” Gongora said. “When we practice, it’s not just one player. We’re not just one-dimensional. We’ve got a number of guys that can be difference makers.”
Meanwhile, Napa was led by Brayden Greenlee who had a game-high 34 points with three rebounds.
“He’s definitely one of our go-to guys,” Garcia said of the senior guard. “I trust every single guy that we make plays for. We practice those plays and we expect everyone to get the hot hand and when one guy’s getting hot, we’re especially going to hit him.”
Spencer Gorman pitched in ten points with two boards. Tyler Oda also had nine points with a rebound.
Both teams will continue league play next week. Vintage will visit American Canyon on Tuesday at 7 pm. In the first meeting, Vintage beat American Canyon 57-53. However, Vintage will play at Cardinal Newman-Santa Rosa on Saturday at 2 pm. Meanwhile, Napa will have the league bye on Tuesday before hosting Sonoma Valley on Thursday at 7 pm. In the first meeting, Sonoma Valley beat Napa 57-50.
In other VVAL games Thursday night, Justin-Siena beat Sonoma Valley 60-46. American Canyon also beat Petaluma 53-44.
