FRESNO - It’s been a long time coming for the Strathmore High School boys basketball program. To be exact it’s been 88 years since the boys basketball program had won a section title. That all ended on Saturday afternoon at Selland Arena when the Grizzlies fended off a scrappy Granite Hills team to win the Division 5 title 45-41. The victory avenges a loss Strathmore had just a year ago when they tasted the agony of defeat, losing the Division 6 title game to Caruthers.
Spartan junior point guard Isaiah Colunga got things started off on the right note as he drained a three point shot 30 seconds into the game to give the Spartans a 3-0 lead. Granite Hills answered with an 8-0 run. They got back to back layups from Joel Iniguez and Cruz Campos, followed by a mid range bank shot from Elijah Green and a driving layup from Alonso Campos to put the Grizzlies up 8-3.
The Spartans countered right back, going on a 6-0 run to take a 9-8 lead. After Xavier Fernandez gave Granite the lead back with a mid range jumper Colunga countered with an 18 footer as the buzzer sounded to give the Spartans an 11-10 advantage after one quarter.
With the game tied at 12, Strathmore went on to outscore Granite 10-4 to increase their lead to 23-16. Strathmore’s Nico Martinez bured a trifecta in that run and Colunga finished off the run with a 3 point play.
After the Grizzlies called time out they responded when Fernandez hit a mid range jumper to make it 23-18. However Dion Ambriz scored on a putback and Colunga knocked down a pair of free throws to give Strathmore a 27-18 advantage af the half.
Colunga hit another three pointer to start things off in the second half, giving Strathmore their largest lead of the game 30-18.
Granite came roaring back to get themselves back into the game. They got a three point bucket and a mid range jumper from Noah Gudino. Green then scored on a layup and Fernandez scored in transition to cut the deficit to 32-29. Victor Millan's jumper then got Granite back to within 1 at 32-31. Martinez broke the run when he knocked down his second three of the game making it 35-31. Granite countered with a three point bucket from Fernandez and it was a one point ballgame going into the fourth.
Iniguez gave Granite Hills their first lead since the first quarter when he knocked down a pair of free throws to make it 36-35. Strathmore’s Nashaan Gil quickly gave the Spartans the lead back with a reverse layup at the 6:12 mark. Green countered with a three point play with 5:03 remaining to give the Grizzlies the lead back 39-37. Strathmore’s Canyon Johnson hit a mid range jumper to tie things at the 3:15 mark. Colunga gave Strathmore the lead for good wit a driving layup with 2:19 remaining.
Still clinging to that 2 point lead with 1:33 remaining, Strathmore's Diego Lopez knocked down his first three pointer of the afternoon to increase the lead to 44-39.
Granite Hills got a putback from Green to make it 44-41 with 25 seconds left. The Grizzlies, who only committed 1 foul up to this point in the fourth quarter were then forced to have to foul four straight times, the fourth foul putting Strathmore on the line for 2 shots with :15 left. Strathmore missed both free throws, giving the Grizzlies hope. However Martinez made the defensive play of the game as he was able to knock the ball away, causing a scramble which resulted in a jump ball, and Strathmore had the possession arrow in their favor. Martinez was then be fouled and he seal he game by knocking down the first of two free throws, giving Strathmore the section title.
“It’s an incredible feeling. I am so proud of this group of boys, we have been knocked down so many times before. This group of boys was 10-17 three years ago, but this group of boys bought into the work that it takes to get better. To me this section title is special for the boys, for our families and for our school. It’s just an amazing feeling,” exclaimed Spartan coach Israel Valdez.
Despite falling just short, Grizzly coach But Luther couldn’t have been more pleased with his team. “We had an exceptional run that was very unexpected. Getting to the finals is nearly impossible and these kids willed themselves there. They play with such good effort. They give all they have. We were out sized in nearly every game we played this season, but heart and toughness got us through a lot. This is an amazing group of kids that have worked so hard to get whee they are. It’s basically the Bartlett (Middle School) team. It’s neat to see their growth. Each year they get better. I can’t ask for anything more”.
Strathmore was able to keep Granite Hill's offense stifled with their length defensively. “Their zone is tough. Their length really disrupts what you can do. There are no passing lanes. If you do get by the first line of defense then you have to deal with 6-3: and 6-5 guys waiting behind them. Their length also controlled the boards. It’s a chess game to see what can work. We found some stuff late in the game that worked, I probably should have stayed with it a little longer,” said Luther about the Strathmore defense.
“Our zone is tough, we have five guys with length. Dion, Isaiah, Canyon, Israel and Nashan are all 6-1 to 6-6. We want to disrupt the passing lanes with the zone and it is something we do every day at practice. We wanted to use our length to disrupt timing and it is a focus of us defensively regardless of who we play,” said Valdez about his team's ability to control the game defensively.
Luther talked about his team’s ability to come back from a double digit deficit. “I’m so proud of them for staying with it. They are tough kids. They have not had anything given to them. They have worked for it. At this point in the season you have to step up and make plays. We made some adjustments and we had some shots go down that allowed us back in the game. The kids played hard and ran hard and that will give you some opportunities. In the end Strathmore was able to make a couple tough plays and tough shots that was the difference.”
Valdez knew Granite Hills was going to have a run in them int he second half. “Basketball is a game of runs. In fact one of our kids talked about it. We just knew we had to trust one another down the stretch and we did. We’ve been in these moments before. Our experience and togetherness allowed us to have three to four good possessions down the stretch.”
Colunga led all scorers in the game with 16 points and made some tough buckets down the stretch, along with facilitating the offense from the point guard position. “Isaiah is a special player, he does a little bit of everything for us. He can score, facilitate, rebound, and be such a force defensively. He has grown so much as a player, and his ability to stay aggressive is what has allowed us to have some great moments on the offensive side. Isaiah puts pressure on the rim and his ability to knock down the outside shot enough makes it difficult for teams to guard him,” said Valdez about Colunga.
The Spartans earned the No. 8 seed in the Division 5 Southern Section State Playoffs and will host La Puente High School tonight at 6 p.m.