by Charlie McDonald (charlie.mcdonald@surewestsports.com)
by Mike Finnerty (mike.finnerty@surewestsports.com)
There's a new look at the top of the standings in the Sierra Foothill League this season.
Last year the SFL was dominated by Woodcreek and Granite Bay. The year before it was Woodcreek and Oakmont meeting up in the section championship, and in years prior it was Rocklin that reigned king with some of the best teams in the section and in the State.
Tuesday night, after three straight years of last place finishes for a combined league record of 1-32, the resurgent Roseville Tigers (12-9) took on the Del Oro Golden Eagles (14-7), with both teams coming into the game boasting records of 3-0 and tied for first in the SFL.
With Roseville up 31-26 with 5:30 left in the third, Del Oro caught fire and went on a 17-4 run to close out the third with a lead of 43-35, before eventually closing out the game with a 64-53 win.
"They're a very good team, they're an explosive team," said Del Oro head coach Geoff Broyles. "We knew we had to get back defensively and I thought we did a good job of keeping them from getting fast breaks in that third quarter and making them run their half court offense and we rebounded the ball really well and we were able to get it off the rim and take it down the court and get some easy ones."
The big third quarter run by Del Oro included a mix of inside and outside shots by 6'4" senior guard Austin Soldano who had six points as part of the rally, plus back-to-back jumpers by Taylor Bergthold (6'3", senior, forward) would cap off the scoring surge before the end of the quarter.
Nether team could get anything more than a three-point lead in the first half. Del Oro led 10-8 after the first, and Roseville took a 23-22 lead to the half.
Roseville's 6'6" senior center Andrew Schmidt was a force inside, particularly in the second and third quarters where he would finish with 14 points on the night.
"We felt like the first half we had some really good opportunities and didn't convert. We were doing a good job defensively. We knew that if could get our transition game going a little bit we might be able to get a little bit of run and maybe get enough of a lead and feel comfortable."
The Del Oro tandem of Soldano (16 points) and fellow 6'4"senior guard Jordan Broyles (16 points) carried the bulk of the scoring load for the Golden Eagles on this night, with Broyles getting to the free throw line time and again (8 for 10) while also knocking down a pair of three-pointers.
"They both played really well. I thought they did a good job of taking shots, taking great team shots. They were able to draw some fouls and finish some plays for us. They did a good job."
By the end of the week, all SFL teams will be at the midway mark of league play, but for Broyles he knows his team needs to just stay the course.
"It's the SFL and anybody can beat anybody on any night. We're really happy to be 4-0 and in first place, but we also know we're not even half way through league. We've got a lot of work to do, a lot of basketball ahead of us, so we just have to stay focused and keep doing what we're doing, trust in our process, and continue to go out there and compete hard."
Both teams will resume action on Thursday with Del Oro (4-0) playing at Granite Bay (3-1), while Roseville (3-1) makes the short drive across town to take on Woodcreek (0-4).