Beyer unleashes press in come-from-behind victory over Central Catholic

The Beyer High School boys basketball team shuffled into the locker room at halftime – shoulders slumped, heads hung low, feeling the effects of a rare two-game losing streak.

The Patriots emerged as a different team, sending city rival Central Catholic to its second consecutive loss at the 17th annual Holiday Hoop Classic with a 53-48 victory Wednesday.

Brian Perry scored 13 of his team-high 15 points in the second half as Beyer flipped the scoreboard with a frenetic pace.

“We started using our aggressive, trapping defense,” Beyer coach Kyle McKim said. “Sooner or later, I’ll figure out that we need to start and stay in that. We share the ball well when we’re playing that fast. … I had to unleash them.”

Ben Polack had 12 points and Dylan Weltmer scored seven for the Patriots (7-4), who will play Ceres in a consolation bracket semifinal Thursday at noon.

Central Catholic rolled into the tournament on a season-long, seven-game winning streak but has lost its first two games in the tournament. On Tuesday, the Raiders surrendered a 13-point lead in the fourth quarter to Central of Fresno and lost in overtime.

It was more of the same Wednesday. Central Catholic led 36-24 early in the third quarter when McKim “unleashed” his press, triggering a 9-0 spurt. Perry had two layups in transition, Weltmer converted a 3-point play and Polack sliced through the lane for a left-handed finish.

While Beyer heated up, the Raiders went cold. Central Catholic (7-2) managed just six field goals over the final two quarters, missing from all spots on the floor.

McKim will take the victory, convinced his team’s energy and press unraveled a defending Sac-Joaquin Section champion with four returning starters.

“It’s huge, and it starts with the respect we have for their level of talent and coach (Mike) Wilson,” McKim said. “But it means a lot because they’re a good team. They’re the defending Division IV champion.

“It’s become a pretty good rivalry with them the last couple of years.”

The Patriots trailed 28-20 at the half. The cold shooting that hampered Beyer in a 64-58 loss to El Cerrito the night before seemed to carry over. The Patriots went more than seven minutes without a point in the fourth quarter of that loss, their fourth in five games.

The Raiders, meanwhile, early on had no issue finishing, from near or far. Central Catholic connected on three 3-pointers in the second quarter, including two by Cooper Wilson (11 points).

Joshua Hamilton led the Raiders with 13 points, while Jared Rice and Amrit Dhaliwal each had eight for the Raiders, who will play Castlemont of Oakland on Thursday at 10:30 a.m.

Modesto Christian 72, Turlock 47 – The Crusaders remain in the hunt for a second straight Holiday Hoop Classic title, dispatching the Bulldogs with a 19-3 push in the second quarter.

Darrian Grays, Modesto Christian’s lone senior starter, led the way with 19 points on three 3-pointers. Junior Tyler Williams had 13 points and seven rebounds, five of which came on the offensive glass.

After a rough tournament debut, freshman Baljot Sahi rediscovered his touch from the perimeter. He connected on four 3-pointers and finished with 14 points.

Turlock gave Modesto Christian fits early. The Bulldogs led 13-11 after the first quarter and 17-13 in the second before the Crusaders hit the gas.

Applying a suffocating full-court press, Modesto Christian forced 12 turnovers, igniting its transition offense. The Crusaders will play the winner of Central-Fresno and El Cerrito on Thursday.

Manteca 55, Immanuel 52 – Led by Tydus Verhoeven, the Buffaloes erased a nine-point halftime deficit and advanced to the semifinal round of the champion’s bracket.

Verhoeven scored eight points in the fourth quarter, including the go-ahead free throws with 1:48 left. His left-handed layup, driving past Cal State Bakersfield commit Darrin Person Jr., made it 55-52 with 26 seconds remaining.

Immanuel’s Nate Kendricks had a chance to send the game into overtime, but he slipped before releasing a 3-point attempt. The shot was well off the mark. The Buffaloes will play tournament favorite Salesian-Richmond on Thursday at 7:30 p.m.

Verhoeven finished with 22 points, eight rebounds and four blocked shots. Gino Campiotti had 13 points and five rebounds, while Dwight Young netted 10 points.

Person paced Immanuel with 22 points. His offensive rebound with six seconds left set up Kendrick’s potential tying shot.

Berkeley 61, Modesto 60 (OT) – Ryan Silva netted 16 points and led four players in double figures for Modesto, which fell to 0-2 in the Holiday Hoop Classic.

Guards Qimonni Myers and Markus Brady had 11 points apiece and Esteban Martin scored 10 as the Panthers pushed the North Coast Section power.

The score was tied 52-52 at the end of regulation.

Ben Baker paced the Yellowjackets with 23 points. Sean Spikes had 10.

Clovis East 61, Delhi 28 – The Hawks kept the game close for a quarter but were undone by a 21-4 spurt in the second quarter.

Richard Corona and Spencer Matthes had 11 points apiece for the Timberwolves, who led by four after one quarter.

Chance Browning accounted for most of Delhi’s offense. With a smooth stroke, Browning had 18 points.

This story was originally published December 28, 2016 at 5:17 PM with the headline "Beyer unleashes press in come-from-behind victory over Central Catholic."