Los Altos’ CCS Division I playoff run ended Tuesday night in a 68-48 away defeat to No. 1 seed Evergreen Valley.
“It’s a tough loss,” Los Altos girls basketball head coach Brittany Taylor said after the game. “I felt really prepared, but we just fell short on a few things and areas, but it’s a good season overall. I can’t complain about making it to the second round of CCS; got a good seed. Pretty successful season overall.”
The Eagles started well and had a 16-15 lead in the second quarter thanks to early defensive intensity and hitting shots. After being down 15-9 at the end of the first, Los Altos went on a 7-0 run thanks to two 3-pointers from sophomore guard Chinglam Tseung. Taylor noted the players performed the fundamentals well, like stepping into passes, ball movement and getting the team’s shooters involved.
“I think once we got on that roll and took care of the ball, it definitely helped us get into that position and just committing to getting stops,” Taylor said.
However, the Cougars went on an 11-3 run midway after losing the lead, with Evergreen Valley guard Ryka Aprameyan hitting two 3-pointers to start the run and Xuan-Mai Nguyen adding several buckets to make it 26-19. The Cougars ramped up the defensive pressure and closed out the half ahead 40-27 after a 25-11 run, during which Los Altos went into a scoring rut despite getting good shooting looks. The Eagles finished with 12 turnovers in the first half and 22 for the game.
“We missed a few layups, a few wide open shots that didn’t allow us to sustain our run,” Taylor said of the second quarter. “But I think we still got them to miss quite a few shots, and then we just kind of wore out at the end of that quarter, and they just capitalized on some of those moments.”
The Cougars extended the lead to 51-33 at the end of the third quarter and had the edge in the fourth quarter 19-15. Aprameyan finished with 20 points for Evergreen Valley, Lealah Rowden 15 points and 12 rebounds and Nguyen 14 points and rebounds. Los Altos sophomore guard Ella McFarlane was tied for the team lead in points with Macy Watson at 14. McFarlane noted the team missed chances to keep the game close but was proud of the team’s good playoff run despite the loss.
“I think we have grown so much from the start of the season,” McFarlane said. “I did not think it was going to be that great at the beginning of the season, but I think we have grown so much. We’ve learned how to play as a team better and move the ball more.”
The Eagles (12-13) loss to the Cougars (20-5) comes after they beat Santa Teresa Feb. 17, 47-33, with Los Altos earning a surprisingly high No. 8 seed thanks to its tough non-league schedule that garnered wins against Menlo-Atherton and a 6-6 record in the SCVAL De Anza Division. For first-year coach Taylor, the future is bright with lots of young players and a team that jelled in the back half of the season.
“Our first round of CCS was great, and I think we put the pieces together at the end,” Taylor said. “Just getting the kids to really click and start playing together. Today, we preached one band, one sound. We have to play together in order for us to be successful.”
