Dougherty Valley does it again: Wildcats erase second-half deficit, stun Amador Valley in OT to reach EBAL final
SAN RAMON — Dougherty Valley has a way of making the last minute of a game feel inevitable.
So even with Amador Valley up 13 in the second half and still ahead by four with under 60 seconds left on Tuesday night, the Wildcats never looked panicked. They were just patient and collected, waiting for the game to tighten.
And when it did, Dougherty Valley did what it has done all season: It turned defense into chaos, made its gym into a pressure cooker and pulled another close-game escape out of its back pocket in a 76-67 overtime win in the East Bay Athletic League boys basketball semifinals.
Amador Valley controlled the second half and appeared in position to advance before Dougherty Valley’s full-court pressure sparked a late rally that forced overtime. In the extra period, Dougherty Valley’s depth and defensive intensity finally wore down the Dons, completing the Wildcats’ second straight win over Amador Valley after beating the Pleasanton school two weeks ago.
The victory sends Dougherty Valley to the EBAL championship game for a rematch with De La Salle in Concord, a year after the Wildcats were blown out in the final and weeks after they lost to the Spartans on the road early in league play.
“They’re a fearless group. They’re not afraid to be on the big stage,” Dougherty Valley coach Mike Hansen said. “Every play takes on a life of its own. Just play as well as you can. And when it’s over, flush it and make the next play. And this group’s really good at that.”
Rashod Cotton Jr. led Dougherty Valley with 27 points, four rebounds and four assists. Sophomore Alonzo Walker III scored 20 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Junior guard Rylan Sevilla added 12 points.
Elijah Stanley and Jaylin Smith each had 15 points for the Dons while Biruk Menna added 12 and San Jose State commit Cade Krueger had 11.
Paced by Stanley and Smith, Amador Valley held a comfortable double-digit lead in the third quarter. The Dons seemingly got whatever they wanted behind a dynamic three-guard attack.
But that all changed toward the end of the third quarter and early into the fourth.
The Wildcats went on a mini 7-0 run that a steal and dunk from Cotton that cut the lead to just one early in the final period. Dougherty Valley’s trapping defense didn’t force turnovers initially, but made the Dons slow the game down.
Amador Valley rebuilt its lead to eight after a Smith layup at the rim, but found itself down a key player after Stanley fouled out with just over five minutes remaining.
Down a key ball handler, Dougherty Valley turned up its pressure.
Trailing by four with just under 40 seconds left, Dougherty Valley turned to Walker to give the Wildcats some momentum.
The sophomore delivered.
Walker cut the Amador Valley lead to two after scoring on a fastbreak layup. With 15 seconds left, he made the biggest play of the game as he stole an Amador Valley pass at halfcourt and scored a layup with five seconds remaining.
“I was just playing the game with high energy,” Walker said of the steal and score. “When I have high energy, good things happen.”
The Dons’ last-second heave fell short as the two teams went to overtime.
But by then, Dougherty Valley seized all the momentum.
What was a quiet student section suddenly came alive. Dougherty Valley’s bench got louder and louder, cheering on their teammates hungry for a win. The music during the intermission breaks suddenly felt louder and louder as the Wildcats felt poised to win the game.
The overtime period became non-competitive as Dougherty Valley pounced on the fatigued Dons. The San Ramon school opened the extra period with a 13-3 run, punctuated by a high-flying dunk from Walker to seal Dougherty Valley’s spot in the EBAL championship game.
“We always preach just fight for 32 minutes,” Cotton said. “We were down, but we just kept telling each other that we were in it. We just never have doubt. We kept fighting and that’s what we did today. I’m proud of all of our teammates.”
It was a stinging loss for Amador Valley, which has struggled finding consistent play over the last two weeks. The Dons lost three of their last four games in similar fashion, struggling to close out a game that they led in early.
“There’s nothing else to say other than they were tougher than us tonight,” Amador Valley coach Willis Gardner said. “We lost Elijah, who is another one of our ball handlers. But still, we should have controlled the tempo and controlled the game.”
Amador Valley will end its regular season with a 16-11 record. The Dons will await their North Coast Section playoff fate when the postseason brackets come out on Sunday.
De La Salle rallies to beat Monte Vista
Trailing by two going into the fourth quarter, De La Salle rallied at home to beat No. 4 Monte Vista 52-44 and advance to the league title game.
The Spartans outscored the Mustangs 19-11 in the final period to seal the win.
In his first game back since missing the last two with sickness, point guard Ibrahim Monawar led De La Salle with a game-high 16 points. Junior Olanre Owoborode had 15 points.
Max Nishikawa led Monte Vista with 13 points and Caden Wight added 11.