Vintage’s fast start helps them cruise past Napa and to second consecutive VVAL title
By Kyle Foster
Twitter: @NapaKyle @NapaSportsNews
Whenever you have two players in with double-digit points at halftime, something is working.
That was the case for the Vintage boys’ basketball team on Tuesday night when they beat Napa 78-65 in the second Big Game of the season that was also the finale for the spring season.
With the win, Vintage secured their second straight league title. The title is even more impressive due to the fact the team faced no issues with COVID-19 other than having one game canceled, which wasn’t of their own doing.
“It’s just awesome,” Vintage head coach Ben Gongora said. “Back-to-back 10-win seasons. It’s irrefutable, we’re the champs. This season, in particular, it was twofold. You had to compete and get W’s and you got to stay healthy. So if you stayed healthy, but you didn’t get W’s no Bueno. If you got W’s but you didn’t stay healthy, no Bueno. We did both, so we’re champs.”
“It was a perfect way to end our season,” Vintage senior guard Logan Nothmann explained. “I’m just glad that we were able to go out without leaving any doubt in anybody’s minds.”
At the break, Nothmann had 15 points – all of which came in the first quarter. Jackson Corley had 19 points at halftime. Nothmann ended the night with a team-high 22 points and brought in seven rebounds. Corley finished the night with 21 points and a rebound.
“I knew it was my last game. I was trying to get it off on the right foot,” Nothmann said of his big first quarter. “I just happened to have the ball in a lot of situations. I was able to get to the rim and it worked out.”
The Crushers (13-2 overall, 10-1 Vine Valley Athletic League) jumped out a double-digit lead early in the first half due in large part to their press, which created a lot of fast-break opportunities.
“We were just pressuring them,” Nothmann said of the first half. “Just taking it away from him, honestly. We pushed the ball really well in the first quarter and we had a ton of transition points. Whenever we do that, we succeed.”
“They pushed the ball. They exposed our ability to not get back on defense,” Napa coach Joel Garcia pointed out. “I mean, they push that ball. I think they had quite a couple (of) fast-break points. Not only that. Now being able to produce because of pressure was a tough one.”
Napa (2-9, 2-9 VVAL) answered the first half punch they were given by making a run of their own in the third quarter. They were able to trim the lead down to less than ten points at one point.
“Sometimes, it takes a quarter. It takes a half,” Garcia added. “That’s one of the things we struggled with this year. Playing basketball in the spring usually doesn’t work for anyone, but things were picking up. We communicated well in the locker room. We were finally moving the ball and finding open shots and rebounding the ball and defending.”
Leading the way for the Grizzlies was Brayden Greenlee. In the final game of his high school career, he dropped a game-high 24 points – all of which came in the second half. He also grabbed two rebounds.
“He’s able to produce. He’s always been that type of guy when he’s gonna get shots,” Garcia said of the senior. “When he gets the ball, he’s going to find shots. He’s gonna have a distribute for the team, and he’s gonna get the team going.”
Tyler Oda and Spencer Gorman finished the night with 11 points. Oda also added two rebounds.
“He’s our distributor,” Garcia said of Oda. “He’s our ball handler. He’s our heart.”
In other VVAL action Tuesday night, Sonoma Valley beat Justin-Siena 73-66 and Petaluma beat Casa Grande 62-55.
Both teams’ seasons are now complete. However, there won’t be much time to rest with summer activities set to begin in a few weeks.
