The Leland High School boys basketball team was focused entering its game on Feb. 1 against visiting Piedmont Hills, which was undefeated at that time in the Blossom Valley Athletic League Mt. Hamilton Division.
“They were prepared for that game,” said Leland coach Mitchell Shapero about his team. “They knew it would be a tough battle … The guys were very humble because they knew what happened the first time.”
The Chargers fell to Piedmont Hills 77-36 in their first meeting this season on Jan. 10. But the tables were turned Feb. 1. Leland handed Piedmont Hills only its second loss of the entire season, 61-47.
“They knew if they executed well, they would have a chance,” said Shapero about his team. “We focused on moving the ball around. Piedmont is so aggressive and so good on steals.”
In the Jan. 10 game, Piedmont Hills took a 23-12 first-quarter lead. But on Feb. 1, Leland led the Pirates 18-10 at the end of the first quarter.
“We hit a lot of shots early. Our guys came out focused and ready to play,” Shapero said. “We put our shooters in different spots. We wanted (Sohan Kshirsagar) to be able to find guys easily.”
Kshirsagar, the Chargers’ 6-foot-2 junior point guard, passed for five assists in the victory. He was also one of three Leland players who scored in double figures. Kshirsagar had 14 points, Joseph Chen scored 15 points, and Shane McKnight led the Chargers with 21 points. McKnight also paced Leland in rebounds with eight.
“He’s a Swiss Army knife … he’s an all-around really good player,” said Shapero about the 6-foot-3 junior.
Shapero also pointed out the offensive rebounding of Khalil Simmons. The senior had five rebounds, all offensive, to aid the Chargers’ cause.
Despite its fast start, Leland held a slim 41-40 lead entering the fourth quarter. But Leland ended the game with a 20-7 run. The Chargers improved to 11-9 overall and 5-5 in the BVAL Mt. Hamilton Division with the victory.
“It was an emphasis on taking good shots .. all game. We really put an emphasis on that in the fourth quarter,” Shapero said.
Leland engineered the huge win over Piedmont Hills after falling to Santa Teresa 70-66 on Jan. 30. The Saints jumped out to a 23-10 lead in the first quarter and held a 48-26 halftime advantage.
“They played really well,” said Shapero about Santa Teresa. Shapero was pleased that his team rallied in the second half, outscoring Santa Teresa 40-22 in the second half to fall by only four points.
Simmons scored a team-high 22 points. McKnight and Kshirsagar added 13 and 11 points respectively.
McKnight posted a double-double with a team-high 12 rebounds, and also had a team-high six assists. Simmons and Kshirsagar both grabbed eight rebounds, and Kshirsagar also passed for five assists.
Leigh split its games last week to remain in second place in the BVAL Mt. Hamilton Division.
It fell 78-71 to Piedmont Hills on Jan. 30. The Pirates outscored the Longhorns 20-14 in the second quarter to break away for the win.
But Leigh bounced back with a 74-49 victory at Santa Teresa on Feb. 1. The Longhorns led 32-22 at halftime and outscored the Saints 27-13 in the fourth quarter to wrap up the win.
Entering this week, Leigh had a 7-3 Mt. Hamilton record and 9-11 overall mark.
Branham kept its stranglehold on the BVAL Santa Teresa Division lead with two wins last week.
On Jan. 30, the Bruins held off Silver Creek 49-42. Branham held a 32-26 lead at the end of the third quarter.
Then Branham defeated Independence 51-42 on Feb. 1. The Bruins trailed 31-22 at halftime, but outscored the 76ers 29-11 in the second half.
With the victory, Branham entered this week with a 9-1 BVAL Santa Teresa Division record and 12-7 overall mark.
Pioneer also split its games last week to enter this week tied for second in the BVAL Santa Teresa Division with a 7-3 record (13-7 overall).
The Mustangs fell to Independence 61-52 on Jan. 30. The 76ers broke away with a 20-12 scoring advantage in the fourth quarter. But Pioneer traveled to Silver Creek on Feb. 1 and beat the Raiders 59-50.
Girls Basketball
Branham continued its successful season, winning both its games last week to enter this week with a 12-8 overall record and 5-1 mark in the BVAL Santa Teresa West Division.
The Bruins, who had a four-game winning streak entering this week, took a 16-0 first-quarter lead against Prospect on its way to a 50-31 victory. Then Branham defeated Lincoln 47-38 on Feb. 2.
Leland also won both its games and entered this week in third place in the BVAL Mt. Hamilton Division with a 4-2 record (11-9 overall).
The Chargers edged Willow Glen 46-44 on Jan. 31. Host Leland outscored the Rams 21-14 in the fourth quarter for the victory.
Saloni Bagri led Leland in scoring with 19 points, including 3-for-4 three-point shooting. Sheridan Payne added 10 points for the Chargers.
Jessica Snyder paced Leland in rebounds with six. Karli Mukai passed for a team-high three assists, and Payne had a team-high four steals.
Then the Chargers defeated host Sobrato 41-34 on Feb. 2. Mukai had a team-high 17 points and four assists. Payne, Snyder and Ericka Sangco-Lidgey all had five rebounds for Leland, and Payne added a team-high five steals.
Pioneer fell to 2-4 in BVAL Santa Teresa West Division play (6-12 overall) with a 42-37 loss to Del Mar on Feb. 2. On Jan. 31, Lincoln beat the Mustangs 49-30.
Leigh lost 55-44 to Gunderson on Feb. 2, as the Grizzlies outscored the Longhorns 29-18 in the second half.
Boys Soccer
Pioneer split two road games in the BVAL Mt. Hamilton Division last week. It beat Evergreen Valley 2-0, but lost to Prospect 3-1. The Mustangs entered this week with a 9-5-1 overall record and 5-4-1 mark in the Mt. Hamilton Division.
Despite goals from Grant King and Angel Avalos, Branham fell 3-2 to Overfelt on Jan. 29. Lucas Cuellar assisted both of the Bruins’ goals.
A 1-0 loss to Hill on Feb. 1 left Branham with a 3-6-1 BVAL Mt. Hamilton record (6-8-1 overall) entering this week.
Leland continued its great season with a win and a tie in BVAL Santa Teresa Division action last week. The Chargers beat visiting Del Mar 4-0 on Jan. 29, then tied Independence 1-1 on Feb. 1 with a second-half goal.
Leigh split its games last week. It fell 2-0 to Prospect on Jan. 29, but beat Evergreen Valley 1-0 on Feb. 1.
Girls Soccer
With two shutout victories last week, Leigh remained near the top of the BVAL Mt. Hamilton Division with a 6-0-4 record (8-1-5 overall) entering this week.
On Jan. 30, the Longhorns used goals by Josie Kim and Camryn Borg to defeat Santa Teresa 2-0. Britney Cooksey and Shelby Page had assists in the victory.
Then Leigh had three second-half goals in a 3-0 win over Willow Glen on Feb. 2. Anushka Savla, Avery Cannella and Alice Barbieri all tallied goals for the Longhorns, and Sophia Rodriguez passed for two assists.
With a pair of victories last week, Pioneer was right behind Leland in third place with a 6-1-3 Mt. Hamilton Division record (11-1-4 overall) entering this week.
The Mustangs beat Willow Glen 1-0 on Jan. 30 and Santa Teresa 3-2 on Feb. 2.
Leland tied Sobrato 0-0 on Jan. 30, then beat Branham 4-0 on Feb. 2. The Chargers entered this week with a 3-3-4 record in the Mt. Hamilton Division and 4-4-5 overall mark.
Branham’s Lily Muddari-Spencer had eight saves against Leland. Teammates Clarabelle Walkup and Ai-vy Dang scored goals in a narrow 3-2 loss to Piedmont Hills on Jan. 30. Kaylana Owens had two assists for the Bruins, who entered this week with a 3-14 overall record and 0-10 mark in the Mt. Hamilton Division.
