BOYS BASKETBALL: Brotherly Gators Blast Depleted Paly

The Score: SHP 66, Palo Alto 48.

The Stars: Sacred Heart Prep's McConnell twins. Will had a game-high 19 points and his twin brother Reed scored 18 points. The duo accounted for more than half of the Gators' points as Sacred Heart Prep prevailed in an opening-round contest in the Burlingame Lions Invitational Tournament.

The Turning Point: Palo Alto got some good looks early on but just couldn't hit a shot. The Vikings managed to score on their last possession of the first quarter to cut their deficit to 16-8, only to see Sacred Heart Prep's Pat McNamara hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer. That shot sucked the energy out of an already short-handed Palo Alto squad.

The Quote: "It's something we want to do. We have more energy when we are pressing, getting the ball up and down the floor. I think we're better that way." — Sacred Heart Prep coach Tony Martinelli, on a full-court press that helped his team build a 20-point halftime lead against Palo Alto.

What's Next? Sacred Heart Prep advances to meet Riordan in Thursday's 8 p.m. semifinal in the Burlingame Lions Invitational Tournament. Riordan beat Aragon 50-29 earlier Wednesday. Palo Alto drops to the consolation bracket. The Vikings face Aragon Thursday at 3:30 p.m.

The Bottom Line: It's hard to really evaluate Palo Alto, as the Vikings were missing some key players. However, a fourth-quarter burst, which cut the lead to 10 at one point, is something that they can build on. Sacred Heart Prep, on the other hand, was pretty solid throughout on both ends of the court. The Gators had a small drop-off in the second half, but that's normally expected when a team is up by 20 points pretty much the entire game.

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Sacred Heart Prep is taking the phrase, "We're like brothers," to a whole new level.

The Gators have three sets of brothers on their boys basketball team this season, and they were out on display in Sacred Heart Prep's 66-48 win over Palo Alto in the opening round of the Burlingame Lions Invitational Tournament.

Will McConnell led Sacred Heart Prep (2-0) with a game-high 19 points and twin brother Reed wasn't too far behind, scoring 18 points of his own. Younger brother Cole added six points.

The other two sets of brothers—the McNamaras (Pat and Matt) and the Baloffs (Cal and Austin)—round out the family connections for the Gators.

The band of brothers took advantage of a short-handed Palo Alto squad that dressed only seven players. Five of the Vikings—including Davante Adams, T.J. Braff and Bill Gray—also play football and are gearing up for on Dec. 17-18.

With that in mind, the Gators pushed the tempo early, unleashing a stifling full-court press that set the tone for the entire game. Their pressure didn't allow Palo Alto (0-1) to get into any rhythm on the offensive end.

Sacred Heart Prep had a 20-point lead going into halftime. It was a frantic pace for a very young Palo Alto team that turned the ball over 10 times in the first two quarters.

"We played with a lot of underclassmen, so they were a little nervous," said Palo Alto point guard Alec Wong. "In practice, since we have a limited number of guys, we haven't seen that kind of quickness or length, so we were a little rattled by it."

"It's something we want to do," Sacred Heart Prep coach Tony Martinelli said of his team's full-court press. "We have more energy when we are pressing, getting the ball up and down the floor.

"I think we're better that way."

Sacred Heart Prep led 49-31 after three quarters of play, only to see its lead get cut to 10 points midway through the fourth quarter. But a Cal Baloff 3-pointer stopped the Palo Alto push.

The McConnell twins were too much for the Vikings to handle, combining for more than half of the Gators' points. The former bunk-bed mates agreed that being around each other so much makes it a lot easier to work together come game time.

"I think it's really cool," said Reed about having his two brothers on the team. "It's a unique situation and we know where they're going to be on the court."

"We have some pretty good chemistry," added Will.

"It's a little different," Martinelli said. "It's definitely something we've never had before. It makes it fun."

Having so many brothers on the team will benefit Sacred Heart Prep since the Gators are also still putting all their pieces together.  Some of the players are just joining the team following last Saturday.

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Sacred Heart Prep 66, Palo Alto 48

SH – 19 19 11 17 -- 66

PA – 8 10 13 17 -- 48

SH – R. McConnell 8 0-0 18, C. McConnell 2 2-2 6, Baloff 2 0-0 6, Watterson 5 0-0 10, W. McConnell 7 4-5 19, Terndrup 1 0-0 2, McNamara 2 0-0 5. Totals: 27 6-7 66.

PA: Wong 4 2-4 12, Petriceks 1 0-0 2, Schmarzo 4 4-5 14, Hakim 5 1-2 11, Floreal 4 1-1 9. Totals: 18 8-12 48.

3-point goals: SH: R. McConnell 2, Baloff 2, W. McConnell, McNamara. PA: Wong 2, Schmarzo 2.

Records: Sacred Heart Prep 2-0. Palo Alto 0-1.

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Read Patch stories of other games in the Burlingame Lions Invitational Tournament:



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