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The season just got a little longer for the Menlo-Atherton and Menlo boys’ basketball teams, with both playing for section titles this weekend before heading into the NorCal playoffs next week.
Menlo will play for the Central Coast Section Division IV title on Friday with Menlo-Atherton seeking the CCS Division II crown on Saturday.
Second-seeded Menlo (22-7) advanced to another title shot after toppling No. 3 Valley Christian, 68-54, in the semifinals Tuesday at Hartnell College in Salinas. The Knights will play defending champ Palma (20-7) in the 4:45 p.m. finale at the San Jose State Event Center on Friday.
The Knights, who will be playing for their first section title since 1991, already have qualified for the NorCal playoffs that begin next Tuesday. Friday’s winner will play at home to open NorCals while the section loser will hit the road.
Menlo outscored Valley Christian in the second quarter (21-15) and fourth (22-9) to win going away. Garrett Cohen poured in 19 points to lead Menlo while Will Tashman added 15 points and 14 rebounds. Senior Max Frye contributed 14 points to the Knights’ balanced attack.
Menlo made 25 of 30 free throws to help cement the win. Frye and Cohen were a combined 15-of-15 from the line.
Menlo coach Kris Weems said his team’s performance ranked among the best he has seen during his four years at the school. It also was the most points the Knights have scored this season.
Third-seeded Valley Christian actually took a 50-49 lead with five minutes to play. When VC lost its center to fouls with 3:33 remaining, Menlo turned a four-point lead into a 14-point runaway with Cohen and fellow guards Marc Nguyen, Jerry Rice Jr. and forward Max Glenn helping to lead the way.
Third-seeded Menlo-Atherton (21-9) punched its ticket to the CCS Division II title game for the second year in a row after holding off No. 2 St. Francis, 63-58 in the semifinals on Tuesday at Foothill College.
M-A will play No. 1 Mitty (28-1), a 71-36 winner over No. 5 Westmont, in the Division II championship game on Saturday at 8 p.m. at Santa Clara University.
“This was huge,” said first-year M-A coach Phillip White. “Some of these guys didn’t even play last year. These guys have really grown up.”
Fueled by the hot hand of junior guard Peter DeFilipps and the rugged interior play of junior forward Sam Knapp, M-A led St. Francis 35-24 at the intermission after finishing the final 9:25 of the half on a 24-13 run. DeFilipps poured in 23 first half points, including five three-pointers. Knapp led a stingy defense with 10 rebounds in the first half.
With M-A leading 41-26 with 4:49 remaining in the third quarter, St. Francis (15-14) went on an 18-2 surge to lead 44-43 after three quarters. Both schools traded baskets for the majority of the fourth quarter until Knapp drained a six-foot fallaway jumper from the baseline to give M-A a 58-52 lead with 1:39 left.
After St. Francis narrowed the lead to 59-58 with 12 seconds left, M-A senior guard Austin Raub, who had played sparingly, calmly sank two free throws for a 61-58 M-A advantage with 9.5 seconds left. Following an empty St. Francis possession, senior guard Richard Branning hit a pair of free throws to make the final 63-58.
DeFilipps tallied a game-high 27 points with five three-pointers, while Knapp scored nine points and hauled in 17 rebounds. Branning drilled a pair of three-pointers en route to 12 points.
The Menlo-Atherton/Mitty matchup is the third playoff meeting between the two schools in the past year. Mitty, ranked No. 9 in the country despite losing 6-foot-9 star Drew Gordon to a season-ending injury earlier this season, beat M-A in last year’s CCS finals and in the NorCal Division II semifinals.
