KELSEYVILLE — Kyle Ellis took control of the game in the third quarter and the Kelseyville Knights hit a handful of clutch 3-pointers down the stretch while beating the Clear Lake Cardinals 54-42 in North Central League I varsity boys basketball action on Tuesday night in Kelseyville.
Kelseyville’s 20th win of the season keeps the Knights (11-1) atop the league standings with two games remaining. They visit Middletown on Friday before returning home Feb. 14 to play St. Helena. A win on Friday gives them no worse than a share of the league title.
Kelseyville coach Scott Conrad said the Knights are only concerned with what’s directly in front of them, that being the Middletown Mustangs.
“I asked the kids after the game what our most important game was and they said Middletown,” Conrad said.
Kelseyville beat Clear Lake (6-6, 11-13) for the fourth time this season and the eighth time in a row, even if it wasn’t easy.
“That game was a grind,” Conrad said. “No one’s going to give us a thing the rest of the way.”
Ellis, who led the Knights with 21 points, scored 14 of Kelseyville’s 18 points in the third quarter.
“And he also had a couple of big assists,” Conrad said of his four-year veteran.
Even with that, Kelseyville led only 41-37 entering the fourth quarter.
Two big 3-pointers by Randy Pfann and another by Trey Conrad (15 points) down the stretch gave Kelseyville a bigger cushion in the game’s final minutes. The Knights’ defense did the rest, limiting Clear Lake to no field goals and five free throws in the period.
“We played them tough for three quarters,” Clear Lake coach Scott De Leon said. “It was the fourth quarter that killed us. It was a combination of us going ice-cold (outside) and they played good defense. We tried to pound the ball inside and every time we did they swarmed us and stopped us.”
Ryan Damiata’s 17 points and eight rebounds powered the Cardinals. The senior also went 5-for-6 from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter.
“He’s playing great for us,” De Leon said.
With games remaining at Willits on Friday and home against Lower Lake on Feb. 14, the Cardinals are still in the running for a spot in the league’s postseason tournament later this month. Only the top four teams advance and the Cardinals are tied with Lower Lake and Fort Bragg for third place.
