Publication Date: Wednesday Feb 11, 1998

GIRLS' PREP BASKETBALL: Paly clinches CCS berth by beating Gunn

There are many differences between the Palo Alto and Gunn high girls' basketball teams in terms of size, experience and philosophy. But the one similarity the two teams share is the goal to attain a .500 (league or overall) record for an automatic at-large bid to the Central Coast Section playoffs.

With both teams virtually eliminated from winning respective league titles, the two met last Saturday night in a nonleague matchup that had more at stake than city bragging rights.

Utilizing its experience and strong post play, Paly rallied at the finish to edge youthful Gunn, 46-41, and clinch a CCS at-large playoff berth. Paly currently owns a 13-10 overall record and cannot finish below the .500 mark with only three games remaining in the regular season.

Gunn (5-5, 10-9) must win two of its next four games to automatically qualify for the playoffs, since it will not petition to get in.

The difference between Paly is Gunn is startling. Paly relies on experience (seven seniors) and its inside game for success, while the young Titans rely on their transition game, start two freshmen on a team with no seniors, and has seen three head coaches in less than a year.

But new Gunn coach Jeff Remington, who took over for Nina Spears a week ago, thinks his newly acquired team can win two of the next four and sneak into the postseason.

"For the remainder of the year, we need to build confidence and play as a team for four quarters," said Remington, also the school's varsity football coach. "Our goal is to make CCS, then see what happens."

Paly, which hasn't beaten any of the top three teams in the competitive De Anza Division, will get a shot at second-place St. Francis on Wednesday night at Paly.

But last Saturday was a special night for the Vikings, defeating their crosstown rivals for a CCS playoff spot.

"We need to improve each game," said Paly coach Ken Morgan. "But this was our big game and that's how we approached it."

Gunn outhustled Paly in every conceivable fashion early on, building a surprising 25-14 second-quarter lead. But that all changed with appearance of Paly forward Chantelle Brazzel with five minutes left in the half.

Though Brazzel only scored one point in the game, her intensity late in the second quarter picked up a lethargic Viking bunch and enabled Paly to pull within 25-19 at half and play inspired ball for the remainder of the game.

Paly's 6-foot-1 senior center Lindsay Terry tallied 11 of her game-high 21 points in the second half as Paly grabbed its first lead of the game at 38-37 with 4:38 to play.

Junior Magda Hayes also was a key factor, scoring 12 of her 14 points in the second half, grabbing critical rebounds and icing the game with two free throws with seven seconds left.

Gunn junior Correnda Perkins was held under her average of 22 points, yet still managed 14 points and was assisted by sophomore Jacqueline Heler's 10 points.

But the game was decided at the foul line, where Paly made eight of 18 foul shots compared to Gunn's three of seven. Both teams made 19 field goals, with no three-pointers.

Gunn came into the game following a 53-52 upset SCVAL El Camino leader Saratoga last Thursday, keeping the Titans' slim hopes of a league title alive.

Heler not only led the Titans with 20 points, but had a clutch steal in the waning seconds to preserve the upset. Gunn trailed 28-24 at half, only to outscore the Falcons, 29-24 in the final 16 minutes.

Palo Alto, meanwhile, had tough luck having its shots fall in a 45-41 upset loss at Los Gatos. Senior Becky Robinson tallied 13 points for the Vikings, who trailed 30-25 at half.

GPSL

Sacred Heart Prep is peaking at the right time of the season as the defending CCS Division V champions whipped powerful Monta Vista, 38-30, last Saturday in Cupertino in a nonleague game.

The Gators (16-8) have won five games in a row and last Saturday's surprising win proved that the Gators have overcome early season inconsistency and are poised to capture the GPSL crown and defend their section title.

Sacred Heart is currently a half-game out of first place in the GPSL and is receiving balanced scoring and solid defense for first-year coach Lamont Quattlebaum.

Last Saturday, senior Kori Avelino nailed four three-pointers en route to a game-high 15 points, while Courtney Laird added 10 points as the Gators led 19-15 at halftime and held the talented Matadors to only four third-quarter points.

The Gators knocked off first-place St. Ignatius, 36-25, in a GPSL matchup last Thursday in Atherton. And defense ruled the evening.

Sacred Heart smothered the Wildcats and held them to just seven first-half points. Avelino led all scorers with 14 points.

"If we're playing this well at the end of the year, we have a good shot of winning CCS (Division V)," said Quattlebaum.

Meanwhile, sophomore Rometra Craig is doing all she can to keep Menlo's hopes for a postseason berth alive after scoring 33 points, grabbing 12 rebounds, dishing out seven assists and making seven steals in the Knights' 49-35 win at Mercy-San Francisco, last Friday.

Menlo (3-5, 8-8) needs to split its final two games against Sacred Heart Prep and St. Ignatius to attain a .500 overall record and automatically qualify for the CCS playoffs.

PAL Menlo-Atherton (4-5, 8-12) doesn't have the luxury of petitioning to get in the CCS playoffs and must win three of its final four games to make the postseason after losing at Carlmont last Friday, 57-41.

The Bears couldn't recover from a 25-13 halftime deficit in dropping their second consecutive game. Junior point guard Angela Carr-Flowers led M-A with 17 points.

PSAL

Kacey Scheppler (28), Lauren Smith-Hams (18) and Alex Cribbs (16) combined for 62 points in Pinewood's easy 85-29 win at Castilleja last Friday.

The Panthers (8-0, 20-3) haven't been tested in a long time playing in the weak PSAL, but will play unbeaten Redwood Christian (7-0, 16-2) for the only time on Friday in Los Altos Hills at 5 p.m. for the PSAL championship. 

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