The game between Archbishop Mitty and St. Ignatius showcased two of the top sophomores in the country in Aaron Gordon and Stephen Domingo. In the end, it was the Wildcats who prevailed knocking off NorCal's top-ranked team 46-39. Mitty went into the game undefeated in West Catholic Athletic League play at 3-0 with all the wins by double-digits while St. Ignatius languished at 1-2 with an impressive win against Sacred Heart Cathedral in the Bruce Mahoney game.
In the first quarter, Gordon scored the first basket with 6:30 left as Mitty built a 7-0 lead. The Monarch defense was stifling as Gordon controlled the interior with multiple blocked shots. The Wildcats finally scored their first points on free throws with 3:25 left as they were able to end the quarter on a Johnny Mrlik 3-point shot to trail 7-5.
The Monarchs ran off the first 5 points in the second quarter to lead 12-5 as that was the largest Monarch lead of the game. Mitty was leading 20-14 before Mrlik and Domingo ended the half with consecutive layups to cut the Mitty lead to 20-18. Domingo showed a feathery touch from the foul line as he calmly hit multiple free throws.
The third quarter started off with a Gordon bucket but Domingo answered with 7 straight points as his 3-point shot gave the Wildcats their first lead at 25-22. St. Ignatius extended the margin to 36-24 as that was their largest lead of the game and they doubled their first half scoring output. Mitty had a scoring drought of over six minutes as they finally scored in the closing minute to cut the deficit to 36-27.
In the fourth quarter, Mitty scored the first two baskets to cut the deficit to 36-31. The Wildcats took a 40-34 lead at the 4:02 mark and that score stayed the same till the 1:15 mark. Mitty was able to get as close as 43-39.
Notes
How this game was won: The Wildcat defense was the key to this game. Coach John DeBenedetti was ecstatic about his team defense and how his interior players were able to neutralize any Mitty interior scoring. His team played tough both mentally and physically.
Turning Point: Domingo coming out the second half and scoring 7 straight points. The Wildcats did not give up the lead after that.
Mitty analysis: Coach Tim Kennedy felt that his team did not execute and missed too many open shots. He felt that the Wildcats played a great game and executed. Kennedy said that his team lost their poised early in the game and lost focus thereafter. The Wildcats disrupted any Mitty rhythm. Guard Kyle Toth had 17 points while Gordon had 7 points. The Monarchs missed too many open perimeter shots as they were 3 for 14 for 3-pointers and 6 for 21 for free throws. Gordon also had 6 blocks that caused the Wildcats to be more perimeter oriented. The loss drops Mitty to 12-2 (3-1 WCAL) and ends their nine game winning streak. Despite the loss, Mitty is probably still the league favorite but there will be no undefeated team in WCAL play this year like St. Francis in last year.
St. Ignatius analysis: Domingo reiterated his coach's comments by saying that his Wildcats buckled down on defense and played solid team defense. Domingo gave examples of how the team rotated to help on the Mitty perimeter shooters and how the defense collapsed on Gordon to make his shots more difficult. Mitty is averaging over 60 points per game but the Wildcats dictated the pace of the game and kept them below 40 points. After a thrilling win in the Bruce Mahoney game against Sacred Heart Cathedral, the Wildcats go to 10-4 (2-2 WCAL) and have already matched their two league wins from last year and are two more wins from matching last year's twelve wins. Senior guard Mrlik has a good inside and outside game as he had 16 points while Domingo had 15 points. The Wildcats also were 18 for 23 in their free throws.
Aaron Gordon: Rivals.com has Gordon as the No. 7 national prospect in the 2013 class. In multiple games, he has shown his inside and outside ability. He is comfortable leading the fast break while bringing the ball up the court. Teams have been double teaming or playing a collapsing zone against him. In addition, teams are being really physical with him and forcing him to the free throw line instead of giving up the easy layups. He was also invited to the USA basketball camp in October.
Stephen Domingo: Domingo is on the top 50 list in the 2013 class by most recruiting publications. Domingo has a laundry list of colleges contacting him that include Arizona, Arizona State, California, Georgetown, Indiana, Memphis, Princeton, San Diego State, San Francisco, Stanford, UCLA, UNLV, Washington, and Washington State. He was also in attendance of the USA basketball camp in October and enjoyed the experience of playing against some of the best players in the country and meeting some of the best coaches. He is averaging around 15 points and 6 rebounds in his sophomore season. He expects to be a wing or small forward in college as he displays a good shooting touch and quick, versatile release.
No comments:
Post a Comment