ST. HELENA >> Kelseyville neutralized St. Helena’s size advantage with one of its best defensive efforts of the season and beat the host Saints 55-35 on Tuesday night to remain tied with Cloverdale atop the North Central League I varsity boys basketball standings.
Kelseyville and Cloverdale, the two-time defending NCL I champion, are both 6-1 at the midway point of the 2017 league race. Their closest pursuers are Clear Lake and St. Helena, both 3-3.
“Defense travels and we didn’t give them anything easy,” Kelseyville coach Scott Conrad said of the Saints. “We did a good job limiting them to one shot and we really played well.”
Scott Sanchez didn’t score for the Knights, now 14-5 overall, but he did pull down a team-best 10 rebounds while also frustrating the Saints inside.
“I don’t know how many passes he deflected that were going inside, but it was quite a few,” Conrad said.
Kelseyville jumped all over St. Helena in the first quarter and emerged with a 17-5 lead. The Knights increased their advantage to 50-27 through three quarters.
Kyle Ellis led the Knights with 17 points despite taking only 10 shots during the game. Randy Pfann and Ean Valenzuela added nine points apiece while Logan Barrick finished with seven. Trey Conrad had six points and a team-best seven assists.
Kelseyville plays at Fort Bragg on Friday night.
Girls 17-2 with Conrad’s shooting
A 27-8 first quarter was more than enough to carry the Kelseyville Knights to a 66-23 victory over the St. Helena Saints during a North Central League I varsity girls basketball game on Tuesday night in St. Helena.
Kelseyville’s win coupled with Clear Lake’s 60-46 victory over Lower Lake on Tuesday leaves the NCL I race in a virtual three-way tie as both Kelseyville and Lower Lake are now 6-1 to Clear Lake’s 5-1.
“It’s a tough game to get ready for and a tough game to play,” Kelseyville coach Jim Hale said of St. Helena, now 0-6 in the league standings and 4-13 overall. “I challenged them to put it away early and they did that.”
Sophomore guard Payton Conrad led the way with five 3-pointers and a team-best 25 points as the Knights improved to 17-2 on the season.
“Payton shot the ball really well,” Hale said.
Alma Perez added 13 points and a team-best six assists. She needs 27 more points to reach 1,000 for her career. Grace Davidson had eight points and four assists.
The Knights led the Saints 42-13 at halftime and 62-19 after three quarters. Kelseyville finished the game with 16 assists.
The Knights also won the junior varsity game as Allison Bryant scored 21 points in Kelseyville’s 67-29 victory. Grace Duty added 11 points while Kat Brown and Cassidy Griffin each had 10.
Kelseyville is home Friday against Fort Bragg to open the second half of its league schedule. Junior varsity action tips off at 6 p.m.
