NCS basketball roundup: Heartbreak for Windsor boys on rough night all around

Tuesday was an exceptionally tough night for Redwood Empire boys basketball teams in the first round of the North Coast Section playoffs, as all the big powers in action lost. Perhaps the most gut-wrenching loss was suffered by Windsor.

In a Division 2 opener, the host No. 9 Jaguars (23-6) lost 52-50 to No. 8 Tamalpais of Mill Valley (21-9) after a potential game-tying driving four-foot shot in the lane by Windsor's Riley Smith went in and out at the buzzer.

“Heartbreaking,” Windsor coach Travis Taylor said. “Tamalpais' guards were hard for us to defend. They had three guys that could shoot.”

The Red Tailed Hawks made eight three-point shots, compared to Windsor's five.

Windsor was led by Justin Smith (20 points, seven rebounds), Riley Smith (17 points, nine rebounds) and Travis Carlozzi, who added nine points and nine rebounds.

Tamalpais was led by Ryan Hemmeter (18 points) and Jack Duboff (14 points).

The game started off favorably for Windsor when the Jaguars held a 16-8 lead at the end of the first quarter, but their good fortune didn't last. Tamalpais outscored Windsor 31-20 over the second and third quarters.

“In the first quarter we were rolling pretty good but we could have built more of a cushion. In the second half we couldn't get stops and Tamalpais was penetrating,” Taylor said. “It's disappointing when the season ends, but the kids have a lot to be proud of. We improved a lot from the beginning of the season.”

Hayward 59, Piner 48

The No. 5 Prospectors (21-8) were upset by the visiting No. 12 Farmers (10-14) in a Division 3 game after Piner came out of the gate and trailed 14-3 after the first quarter.

“We got off to a slow start. We looked like a young team that was tentative,” Piner coach Mike Erickson said. “But we came roaring back in the second quarter.”

Piner was led by Brennan Carpenter (16 points) and Scott Erickson (14 points).

Hayward was paced by Oliver Hamilton with 15 points.

The Prospectors trailed 31-27 going into the fourth quarter but were outscored 28-21 in the final period.

“Hayward got separation in the fourth quarter and we had to ramp up the press, and late in the game they beat our press,” Erickson said. “Where they really hurt us was in transition - they got some easy buckets.”

Erickson said that Piner defended well in the half-court but could not contend with Hayward's speed and quickness.

Piner is graduating only one senior, so the core of the team should be back next season.

“This year we did a good job and we had 21 wins,” Erickson said. “It would have been nice to win a section game or two, but it wasn't meant to be.”

Redwood 46, Montgomery 39

The visiting No. 10 Vikings (22-7) succumbed to the No. 7 Giants (22-7) in a Division 2 match-up due largely to an off night of shooting by Montgomery. The Vikings were 5-23 from behind the three-point arc.

“We didn't shoot well. We got beat on the boards. It's tough to go out not playing your best game,” Montgomery coach Zac Tiedemann said. “I wish we would have played a little better. We didn't play with the sense of urgency we needed to win an NCS game.”

Evan Pouslen led Montgomery with 21 points.

Miles Squiers led Redwood (Larkspur) with 17 points.

“Redwood is a good offensive-rebounding team. They are very athletic,” Tiedemann said. “Looking back on the year, we have a lot of positives. The seniors left a lot of positive marks on the program.”

In girls games:

Montgomery 71, Rancho Cotate 46

The No. 3 Vikings (23-6) handily defeated the visiting No. 14 Cougars (13-16) in a Division 3 game after racing out to a 41-11 halftime lead.

“The first half was probably our best shooting half and best overall half of the season,” Montgomery coach Darryl LaBlue said. “All of the sudden we got going and we were making shots all over the place. We played with a different mindset to not be in such a hurry on offense.”

Montgomery was led by Ivy Lea (15 points) and Trinity Hawkins (10 points).

Rancho Cotate was paced by Camille Spackman with nine points.

The Vikings had 12 girls in the scoring column and dominated most facets of the game.

“When you are making shots, that helps everything else,” LaBlue said. “We were active on the boards, getting our hands on the ball on defense and getting loose balls.”

Montgomery will host No. 6 Ukiah Friday at 7 p.m. after the Wildcats defeated No. 11 Acalanes of Lafayette on Tuesday. It will be the fifth meeting between Ukiah and Montgomery this season, with the Vikings winning three of the first four meetings.

Casa Grande 45, Petaluma 38

In a Division 3 opener, the visiting No. 8 Gauchos (15-12) defeated the No. 9 Trojans (23-6), who played without injured post-player Jaden Krist. It was the first loss for Petaluma in 2018.

“We played more zone than we normally do without Jaden. We didn't have the height to keep up with Casa Grande,” Petaluma coach Jon Ratshin said.

Casa Grande will play at No. 1 Miramonte of Orinda on Friday at 7 p.m. in a quarterfinal game.

The Gauchos took full advantage of Petaluma's lack of height in the middle as center Mia Kane scored 26 points for Casa Grande.

“Casa Grande was able to drive the lane and find Kane for points,” Ratshin said. “They found the openings, so credit to them.”

Petaluma was led by Sheriene Arikat with 12 points and nine rebounds.

“We have nothing but pride this year. We won the SCL regular season and SCL tournament,” Ratshin said. “It was a really exciting year for the girls.”