KELSEYVILLE >> The Kelseyville Knights are on a nice little roll after dismantling the Fort Bragg Timberwolves 52-21 on Wednesday night in North Central League I varsity girls’ basketball action at Kelseyville.
The win was Kelseyville’s fifth in a row in league play and the team now stands at 7-2 in the NCL I standings and 13-7 overall. The Knights remain one game behind leader Middletown (8-1), a 52-20 winner over St. Helena on Tuesday night in St. Helena.
“We were pretty hot and our defense was clicking,” Kelseyville coach Jim Hale said of the Knights’ first-half play against Fort Bragg.
Powered by Alma Perez, who scored 13 of her team-leading 21 points in the first half, the Knights had a 16-1 lead after one quarter and a 32-4 advantage by halftime.
“We did a nice job of getting rebounds, not giving them second shots,” Hale said. “And we had a lot of steals.”
Perez led the team in steals as well with seven.
“She was hitting from the outside, but she was getting a lot of layups off her steals,” Hale said.
With a big first-place showdown looming Friday in Middletown, Hale said Kelseyville’s mostly young squad had no problem staying focused on the task at hand.
“I kept them very focused and they’re doing a good job of following the gamplan,” Hale said. “Part of that focus is playing one game at a time and not looking ahead.”
While Hale expected the Knights to make considerable improvement this season, he said the team is surpassing his expectations to this point.
“They’re ahead of where I expected them to be,” he added.
Kelseyville handed Middletown its lone league loss, 49-42, on Jan. 13 in Kelseyville. Another win over the Mustangs on Friday night would elevate the Knights into a first-place tie.
“They’re going to be ready for us,” Hale said of the Mustangs. “They’re going to have to make adjustments and we’ll need to adjust to their adjustments. That’s part of the fun of the game.”
Joining Perez in double figures on Wednesday night was Riley Goff with 10 points. Sophie Sells added six.
Fort Bragg fell to 2-7 in league play.
Following Kelseyville’s contest in Middletown on Friday, the Knights close out their NCL I schedule with games against Clear Lake (Tuesday in Kelseyville), Lower Lake (Feb. 13 in Lower Lake), Willits (Feb. 17) in Willits, and St. Helena (Feb. 19 in Kelseyville).
Middletown and Kelseyville are the only two NCL I teams still in prime contention for the league title. Clear Lake, Cloverdale and Willits are all on 5-4 followed by Lower Lake at 4-5.
In junior varsity action Wednesday, Kelseyville knocked off Fort Bragg 53-46 behind 13 points from Tymeka Green and nine apiece from Brisa Villa and Linda Baqleh.
