Browsing all articles in Basketball.

Boys Basketball: Sacred Heart Cathedral falls just short to Alemany in state title game

Boys Basketball: Sacred Heart Cathedral falls just short to Alemany in state title game 

By Jeremy Balan

SACRAMENTO — The Sacred Heart Cathedral boys basketball team’s chances of winning a state championship simply rolled off the rim in a 71-67 loss to Bishop Alemany of Mission Hills in the California Interscholastic Federation Division III championship game on Saturday at Power Balance Pavilion.

Down 69-67 with under 30 seconds remaining, Sacred Heart junior guard Khalil James drove into the lane and released a shot. The ball bounced off the rim and Sacred Heart senior forward Taylor Johns skied for the rebound, tipped the ball softly back onto the rim, but the ball swirled off the back iron.

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Saturday Scoreboard

Scores will be updated as they are sent in. Please send in your scores to contact@SanFranPreps.com or call them in to (415) 251-0918. The score phone line is open 24 hours a day.

Game of the day – Sacred Heart Cathedral vs. Alemany boys basketball: The Irish are seeking their second state title in the boys program’s history and their first since 2009. For live updates on this game, follow us on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/SanFranPreps.

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Road to the State Championship: Irish will have hands full with Alemany guards

Road to the State Championship: Irish will have hands full with Alemany guards 

By Jeremy Balan

The matchup between the Sacred Heart Cathedral and Bishop Alemany boys basketball teams in the Division III state championship on Saturday isn’t a clash of styles as much as it is a class of personnel.

As crazy as it may seem, the two teams appear to be mismatches for each other. The advantage is effectively to be determined.

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Road to the State Championship: 2009 was just the beginning for Joshua Fox

Road to the State Championship: 2009 was just the beginning for Joshua Fox 

By Jeremy Balan

Joshua Fox didn’t play very much as a junior varsity call-up on the Sacred Heart Cathedral varsity boys basketball team that won the Division III state championship in 2009.

He didn’t have to. It was just a step in “The Plan.”

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Road to the State Championship: Irish guards allow SHC to reach higher level

Road to the State Championship: Irish guards allow SHC to reach higher level 

By Jeremy Balan

Sacred Heart Cathedral head boys basketball coach Darrell Barbour has said it so many times this season — when the guards are on, the Irish play at another level.

Everyone expects big games out of standout senior forwards Taylor Johns and Joshua Fox, but the Irish are at their best when their main rotation of four guards — juniors Khalil James and Herman Pratt, senior Tyler Petroni, and sophomore DeOndre Otis — are firing at all cylinders.

All four players are multidimensional, but they gravitate to specific roles and thrive in them.

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Road to the State Championship: Zach Tapel’s season-long struggle

Road to the State Championship: Zach Tapel’s season-long struggle 

By Jeremy Balan

The most prominent decoration in Zach Tapel’s bedroom is a normal sheet of white paper pinned up above his bed.

It could have come from a printer, a copy machine or just a stack of similar pages, but it’s what is written on the sheet that drives Tapel, a senior on the Sacred Heart Cathedral boys basketball team.

It’s not fancy. In fact, it’s quite rudimentary. In thick black marker, Tapel wrote a date down, “11-11-11.”

It’s the date of one of the most painful moments of his life, both physically and emotionally.

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Road to the State Championship: Taylor Johns’ high-flying impact

Road to the State Championship: Taylor Johns’ high-flying impact 

By Jeremy Balan

On the scoreboard, an ordinary jump shot and an emphatic dunk are both worth two points, but their impact on a game can be entirely different.

The spark and momentum gained from a dunk, especially in high school basketball, can be the difference between winning and losing. Sacred Heart Cathedral senior forward Taylor Johns has provided that spark on so many occasions this season.

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Road to the State Championship: Barbour’s unwavering presence

Road to the State Championship: Barbour’s unwavering presence 

Editor’s note: This is the first in a weeklong series of stories on the Sacred Heart Cathedral boys basketball team leading up to Saturday’s state championship game.

By Jeremy Balan

When Sacred Heart Cathedral was down by double digits early against Bishop O’Dowd in the Northern California Division III boys basketball championship game, there was no sign of panic from the Irish players.

They emulate their coach, Darrell Barbour, whose expression and demeanor on the sideline does not change whether the Irish are blowing an opponent out by 30 points or trailing by 20.

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Boys Basketball: Sacred Heart Cathedral wins NorCal D-III title over Bishop O’Dowd

Boys Basketball: Sacred Heart Cathedral wins NorCal D-III title over Bishop O’Dowd 

By Jeremy Balan SACRAMENTO – Unlike so many playoff games this season, Sacred Heart Cathedral shooting guard Tyler Petroni did not light up the scoreboard against Bishop O’Dowd on Saturday. The shots weren’t falling for Petroni, but with the game on the line and less than a minute remaining, the senior made a play to [...]

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Saturday Scoreboard

Scores will be updated as they are sent in. Please send in your scores to contact@SanFranPreps.com or call them in to (415) 251-0918. The score phone line is open 24 hours a day.

Game of the day – Sacred Heart Cathedral vs. Bishop O’Dowd boys basketball: The top two seeds in Division III will compete in a much-anticipated NorCal final. For live updates on this game, follow us on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/SanFranPreps.

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Boys Basketball: Sacred Heart Cathedral a step away from state title game

Boys Basketball: Sacred Heart Cathedral a step away from state title game 

By Jeremy Balan

It’s no surprise that the Sacred Heart Cathedral and Bishop O’Dowd boys basketball teams are meeting in the California Interscholastic Federation Division III Northern California regional championship game on Saturday at Power Balance Pavilion in Sacramento.

Since the season tipped off, the two teams have been tabbed as the best in the region’s division and neither was truly challenged in the prior two rounds of the tournament.

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Girls Basketball: St. Ignatius’ run ends on the road against St. Mary’s in NorCal semis

By Aidan Fitzsimon

STOCKTON – The St. Ignatius girls basketball team was well aware it had a daunting task in taking on top-seeded St. Mary’s of Stockton in the California Interscholastic Federation Division II state playoffs on Tuesday at San Joaquin Delta College.

The Wildcats did not shy away from the task, but still saw their season end with a 68-45 loss in the Northern California regional semifinals.

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