Despite being off since last Thursday, the Castro Valley Trojans showed little rust in their second round NCS playoff game against the Antioch Panthers. The Panthers won their first round game against College Park and were able to stay close in the first quarter with Castro Valley. But Castro Valley showed why they are the top ranked team in the NCP polls and was able to win easily 77-53 behind their senior trio of Juan Anderson, Roderick Bobbitt, and Chris Read.
In the first quarter, the tempo was a frenetic pace that had the teams going up and down on the court. Castro Valley forced several outside shots while Antioch missed several open layups and put backs. The Panthers would only trail 14-12 at the end of the quarter.
The Panthers last lead of the game was at 18-17 in the second quarter. At that point, Castro Valley went on a 16-2 run to take a 33-20 halftime lead. The Panthers committed too many turnovers and could not hit their shots during this Castro Valley run.
Castro Valley extended the lead in the third quarter. With the Panthers trailing 42-30, Castro Valley scored the last seven points of the quarter to lead 49-30. The Castro Valley defense had only allowed 12, 8, and 10 points for each of the first three quarters.
The first two minutes of the fourth quarter was a dunk fest for Castro Valley as Anderson and Read had a few dunks to increase the lead at 59-30. With about four minutes left, Castro Valley had their largest lead of 31 points with a score of 68-37. Castro Valley would send in their reserves to win with a final score of 77-53.
Game Notes
How this game was won: Castro Valley Coach Nick Jones felt that his team came out sluggish but picked up defensively. The high scorer for Antioch was Drew Cones with 10 points while Michael Crawley and Tyvon Walker each had nine points. The Castro Valley trio of Anderson, Bobbitt, and Read outscored the Antioch team 54-53.
Turning Point: Castro Valley made a 16-2 run to end the second quarter at 33-20. Antioch was competitive for the first quarter but could not sustain that level of play thereafter. Anderson commented on how the team increased its intensity while Bobbitt stated how the defense setup the team’s offense.
Antioch analysis: The Panthers made too many turnovers that led to easy baskets for Castro Valley. The team also had several offensive rebound chances and layups that did not fall. The Panthers finish with a 16-12 record and the entire varsity roster will graduate except for two juniors.
Castro Valley analysis: Anderson feels that the team has not reached its potential as he would like to see the team put four good quarters together. Anderson only scored 12 points as Bobbitt and Read had 22 and 20 points respectively. Opponents will have a difficult task of limiting all three of the Castro Valley trio from scoring their normal offensive output.
What is next for Castro Valley: Castro Valley is 26-1 and still look to be the favorites in the NCS playoffs. They await the winner of Newark and Berkeley. Newark has given Castro Valley a difficult time in the past few years while Berkeley was the only loss in the current season.
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