Alemany Gets Mad, Even
Going from last to first is no easy task, but Alemany High pulled off the improbable Wednesday night by knocking off Chaminade, 48-44, to claim a share of the Mission League championship with the Eagles.
A year ago, Alemany went 0-12 in league play. Then Darryl McDonald was hired as coach. Five transfers checked in, and McDonald installed an in-your-face, all-out-pressure defense that most teams still don’t know how to deal with.
Yes, the transfers have made a difference, but it’s time to give credit to the coaching skills of McDonald and the tenacity of his players for the turnaround by Alemany (17-6, 10-2 in league play).
“They’ve got a lot of guts,” Coach Jeff Young of Chaminade said.
Alemany had every reason to make excuses against the Eagles (21-4, 10-2). Through three quarters, the Indians were clinging to a 35-31 lead, and their fans were steaming at the officials. Chaminade shot 19 free throws in three quarters to two for Alemany.
But McDonald warned his players before the game to ignore the fouls and play through adversity.
“No matter what, we weren’t going to let the refs affect our style of play,” McDonald said.
The Indians attacked from start to finish.
Chaminade trailed, 14-2 and 21-7, but Scott Borchart finally tied the game, 36-36, with 6:33 left on a power move. The Eagles seemed ready to take control. Except Alemany wouldn’t let them.
With 6-foot-4 Casey Clausen denying the ball to the 6-9 Borchart, Chaminade needed some outside shooting from Clarence Mitchell or Ryan Arceo. Neither delivered.
Arceo finished one for nine. Mitchell missed all seven of his shots, including a three-pointer with two seconds left that could have sent the game into overtime.
“They went cold at the wrong time,” Young said.
Borchart scored 17 points and grabbed 13 rebounds, but Clausen did his job in the fourth quarter, surrendering only two baskets in the fourth quarter.
Alemany used all 12 of its players, sending wave after wave against the Eagles. Only Reny Maynard reached double figures with 11 points.
Devin Montgomery suffered a rare off game, scoring seven points on two-of-10 shooting.
Bryson Atkins made the key basket of the game, a three-pointer with 2:49 left that put Alemany on top, 45-40.
“[Coach] wanted me to knock down a three-pointer and I had to do it,” Atkins said.
Afterward, the Indians celebrated.
“This is big time,” Clausen said. “Now our mission is a [Southern Section] championship.”
Chaminade is rated No. 1 in Division III-A and favored to defend its section title.
Alemany is rated No. 3 behind Bishop Montgomery and San Dimas in III-AA. But the Indians figure to cause lots of problems with their pressure defense.
