Three days after a win in which all but three of the Vikings scored, the boys’ basketball team defeated the St. Francis Lancers, 68-59, with all but five points coming from three players.
The Vikings were down nine points in the third quarter, but stormed back to the impressive win and now face a familiar foe in the CCS semifinals, Archbishop Mitty.
On Saturday, senior Christian Bakken scored 21, junior Dom Powell didn’t miss a shot, scoring 19, and junior Mike Scott made 11 of 12 free throws attempts in the fourth quarter giving him a game-high 23 points. Ironically, the other five points came from senior Nick Goodspeed, one of the three players who didn’t score in the Vikings first-round win over Westmoor.
Against Westmooor, the Vikings (19-7) looked vulnerable at times but a second half surge carried the team to a 63-38 win over Westmoor. The Vikings’ usually stellar defense did not play their best game, but the offense bailed them out. On Saturday, they needed an even better offensive performance to beat the Lancers
Before Wednesday’s win, the Lancers (12-15) had won only one of their last 13 games. The Lancers play in the West Catholic Athletic League, one of the toughest leagues in CCS, so despite their 2-12 league record, The Lancers are a formidable team and have a lot of experience against playoff-caliber teams.
The game began ominously for the Vikings as the tip went right into the hands of a St. Francis player who laid it in for two quick points. The rest of then first quarter was a dog fight. With the referees calling a very loose game, many players on both sides were sent to the hardwood with no foul called. The quarter ended with the Lancers up 13-12 with senior Robert Bow leading the Lancers with eight points.
The Vikings played uncharacteristically poor defense in the second quarter, allowing way too many open looks and easy lay-ups. The Lancers outside shooters forced the Vikings to play tough on the perimeter, thus opening up the inside. After the Lancers went up 24-14 half way through the quarter, the Vikings began to catch fire thanks to Bakken and Powell. The Vikings cut the lead to 24-22 and went into halftime down 30-26.
Powell finished with seven points in the half while Bakken had 14. Bow led the Lancers with 11 at the half. Scott had only two points at the half, but was only just getting started.
In the third quarter, Bow gave the Lancers five quick points, once again putting the Vikings in a hole. More than halfway through the quarter, the Lancers led 39-30, but the tide began to turn.
Powell and Scott each hit three field goals in the quarter and the Vikings soon found themselves down only three and Bakken held the ball at the top of the key wide open. Despite having missed four straight shots, Bakken wasn’t fazed at all and calmly tied the game with a three-pointer. Scott made two free throws with 1.7 seconds left in the quarter to give the Vikings the 43-41 lead, their first lead since the first quarter.
Miraculously the Vikings started the fourth quarter with a two-point lead and the Lancers appeared flustered. The Viking defense settled in and played much better and the offense kept clicking. The Vikings tried to pull away, but every time, the Lancers knocked down a three-pointer. The clock soon became the Vikings’ best friend and the Lancers began fouling to extend the game. In the fourth quarter, the Vikings took 21 free throws, making 17 of them. Scott poured 11 of 12 attempts, sealing the victory. Even five St. Francis three-pointers weren’t enough and the Vikings prevailed 68-59.
The Vikings were down nine late in third quarter, but they didn’t waver from the game plan, and by game’s end, it was the Vikings winning by nine.
“We try not to think about being down that much,” Scott said. “It just kills any shot we have of coming back.”
The Lancers played a tough game, but simply couldn’t hit enough shots to keep up with Bakken, Powell and Scott. Bow finished the game with 20 points, having hit multiple NBA-range three-pointers.
As for the Vikings and their three stars, it was Bakken that impressed head coach Peter Diepenbrock the most.
“I think that was Christian’s best game of the year,” Diepenbrock said. “These last two games just show you that we have different guys who can get the job done.”
Powell didn’t miss a shot and Scott sealed the victory, but Bakken made what is probably the biggest shot of the season when he tied the game with his three-pointer. At that moment, the Vikings seemed to rise up when the Lancers were down.
As fantastic and memorable this win is, the Vikings don’t have much time to celebrate. They play again on Tuesday, Feb. 27, and against top-seeded Archbishop Mitty (24-5). The Vikings defeated the Monarchs in the CCS finals the last two years and last year, the Vikings faced Mitty in the NorCal finals at Arco Arena, where the Vikings pulled off an incredible comeback to earn the bid to the state title, which they won.
If the Vikings are to beat the Monarchs again, they must stop junior power forward Drew Gordon, ranked 15th in the nation for junior recruits by Rivals.com. If the Vikings can get upset the Monarchs, they will play on Friday, March 2 for their third straight CCS title. Before the Vikings can even think about a three-peat, they must play perhaps the most talented team they’ve played this season. The game is at 7:30 p.m. at Foothill College.
Note: To all those fans planning on attending the semifinal match-up, the Foothill College parking lot requires a parking pass that costs $2.00 that must be paid in quarters.