Gavilan used a solid first half and then fended off a pesky full-court defense to defeat Merced 80-63 in its home opener Wednesday night.
Gavilan (1-3) was coming off a 59-53 loss to Butte and a 64-46 loss to Columbia in the Las Positas Tournament over the weekend.
"We worked hard in the last couple of days of practice," head coach Tito Addison said. "The tournament was tough on for us. We played smart basketball tonight - knowing what we can and cannot do. They stayed the course. Patience was the key."
The Blue Devils, who never led in the game, closed to within six points a couple times midway through the second half, but were never able to get any closer after the Rams responded with timely shots. Despite being outshot 8-3 from behind the arch, the Rams made their shots count when they needed to.
Arron Mollet hit a clutch 3-pointer down the stretch to steal the momentum back for the Rams, and Kenny Hills also had clutch back-to-back buckets down the stretch.
Gavilan, with an aggressive zone defense, kept Merced off-balance early on. The Rams, who showcased good hustle on the boards, built up a 17-5 advantage midway through the first half.
"We did a better job of getting ourselves some shots," Addison said.
"Rebounding is a big focus for us. Usually we don't out-jump a team, but we actually did out-jump a team today."
The Blue Devils kept chipping away and drew to within three points. But the Rams went on a 12-2 run in the final five minutes of the first to take a 35-22 lead into halftime.
Merced had seven different players from out of state on the roster.
The Rams countered with a pair of starting guards all the way from Del Mar High School, including Mollet, who led the Rams with 16 points. Jordan Ramirez, an Alisal alum, had 12 points. The other Ram in double figures was former Alisal High big man Christian Camacho, who had 12 points. Other top Gavilan scorers included Todd Janisch and Travis Masterbone with nine and Sal Moran with eight.
Merced's Alonzo Sharpe, from North Carolina, led all scorers with 17 points.
Gavilan, which has 16 players on the roster, had 10 different players get on the scoreboard. Having so many players on the team keeps it competitive during practice, Addison said.
"We actually have to a share a line in the stat book," he said. "But it's good to see the interest in the program. Those guys battle every day in practice for a rotation spot. This is a group where if you are not taking care of your minutes, you could be buried on the bench."
Gavilan will next head to Ca'ada College in Redwood City on Nov. 21.
"I was careful when we made the schedule," Addison said. "We didn't want so many back-to-back games. I wanted to give our young guys a chance to prepare."
Gavilan volleyball remains hot
The Gavilan College women's volleyball team defeated Monterey Peninsula College on the road Wednesday 25-15, 25-21, 25-16 to improve to 15-6 overall and 7-1 in the conference. The Rams will finish up the regular season with a home game Friday against Hartnell and a road game Wednesday at Saratoga.
Nathan Mixter Nathan Mixter covers sports for South Valley Newspapers. You can reach him at nmixter@svnewspapers.com.
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San Benito Score: Playoffs for football, volleyball and cross country
