Woodside rallies in fourth quarter to beat Gunn in hoops

It took until the final minutes for Woodside High School’s boys basketball team to clinch its 53-48 non-league victory Saturday over host Gunn. But the foundation of the triumph was established in the opening minutes of the first quarter when Gunn’s defense was unable to defend Woodside center Calvin Kapral.

Woodside snapped a four-game losing streak to improve to 12-6. Gunn lost its third consecutive game to fall to 8-9.

Kapral, a 6-foot-6 junior, scored seven first-quarter points, but more importantly drew five fouls in the first quarter putting Gunn’s interior defenders in foul trouble with no fallback options.

The advantage held throughout the game until Kapral fully exploited the situation in the fourth quarter by scoring another nine points on the way to a game-high 20. He also had a game-high nine rebounds.

Guard Isaiah Minor compounded Gunn’s troubles, adding 17 points, seven rebounds and five steals for Woodside.

“We knew they had two really good players we had to stop and fouling has been an issue for us all season,” said Gunn coach Brandynn Williams. “But we are young and our team will keep getting better.

Both Woodside and Gunn are young teams. Woodside played two seniors and Gunn has one senior on its roster. Gunn’s senior, Akash Ravani, sparked the Titans’ third-quarter burst that gave the Titans a 42-35 lead going into the fourth quarter.

Ravani, a transfer from Bellarmine, scored seven points in the final two minutes of the third quarter on three layups and a free-throw to put Gunn up four. Aidan Chi then hit a buzzer beating three on an inbound play with .04 seconds remaining to cap a 21-point third quarter and give the Titans momentum going into the final quarter. Ravani led Gunn’s scorers with 12 points.

Woodside was able to come back in the fourth quarter behind timely defense. The Wildcats limited Gunn to one 3, one two and one free throw over the final eight minutes while Kapral had his way inside.

“That was our game plan – to get it inside,” said Woodside coach Eli Thornton. “We were able to do that against San Mateo and Calvin scored a quick 12. We wanted to do that again. Our guards did a great job getting it inside.”

But when the game was on the line, the defense was the difference. The result ended a four-game losing skid, including a 48-point loss to Menlo-Atherton less than 24 hours prior. Woodside started the season winning its first 10 games.

“We have kids who can focus one game at a time but sometimes you can start doubting yourself and that can seep in,’ Thornton said. “Adversity is always going to hit and you have to respond. After facing setbacks, you have to bounce back. The next game is always the most important.’’