Sports

BOYS HOOPS: Giants Fall Short Of Second Title

Coach Compagno reflects on Redwood's season after a loss in the NCS quarterfinals.

The Giants won't have the chance to defend their North Coast Section boys basketball title, but it's not for a lack of effort according to Redwood High School head coach Steve Compagno.

No. 6 Redwood (17-12) lost to No. 3 Las Lomas (24-4) in Walnut Creek 57-56 in Friday's Division II quarterfinals. The Giants had a chance to win the game but missed a pair of key free throws down the stretch.

"I walked off the court (Friday) night and got on the bus and thought 'I couldn't ask any more from this team,'" Compagno said. "I've always told them, if you take care of the process .. you get good results. The took that to heart. We were just one point away from (the Northern California championships) for a second straight year."

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The Giants trailed 28-21 at the half, but quickly closed the gap against the Knights. Las Lomas scored just six points in the third quarter.

Kai Drewry scored 15 of his team-best 22 points in the second half to pace the Giants' comeback effort. Matt Mareno finished with 15 points.

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"To walk into the locker room down 17 at halftime and to come back like that. We really shut them down in the second half," Compagno said. "To be in a position to win the game in the last few seconds is a testament to the internal fortitude of these kids."

Redwood secured its place in history last season when the Giants went undefeated in the Marin County Athletic League and surged to the team's first NCS title. That season, which included a 20-game winning streak, forged a solid corps for the 2010-11 season.

"We have seven guys returning from that (2009-10) team. The veteran leadership and experience showed up in the second half against Las Lomas," Compagno said.

Drewry and Mareno emerged as two of the team's leading scorers. Fellow seniors Maurice Coleman, Jake Packman, T.J. Gilbert, Conor Doyle and Sam Perrella blossomed under the limelight this season, according to Compagno.

"Those were the guys on the floor that have been there and gone through winning 20 games in a row," Compagno said. "They understood the magnitude of the event and were able to maintain their composure when they had to."


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