The San Lorenzo Valley High boys basketball team has had a season of inches.
A couple more bounces one way — or a few good free throws in tight losses — and the team could be 6-3 in the Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League instead of 3-6.
“Every coach I talk to is scared of SLV, because they see how good we can be,” coach Matt Meisner said. “But we’re not putting it together.”
On Monday, Feb. 1, the Cougars showed their potential in a 68-66 loss to second-place Santa Cruz High, a team they lost to by 24 points earlier in the season.
Down by 20 at one point, the Cougars — cheered on by a raucous home crowd — stormed back with a big fourth quarter and put themselves in a position to win the game by the end.
Two nights later, on Feb. 3, the Cougars fell to Aptos High by 12 points, a game closer than the final score indicated.
“We lost to Aptos in a game that I don’t think we should have lost,” Meisner said.
The Cougars have played a number of tight games in recent weeks, defeating rival Scotts Valley in overtime 66-56, and falling by six to undefeated St. Francis on Jan. 22.
Junior Blake Bechtel leads the team in scoring with more than 17 points per game and is averaging better than 2½ 3-pointers per game.
“Blake is our most consistent player on the offensive end,” Meisner said. “We’ve had glimpses of good play from other people.”
The Cougars have three games left before the league tournament begins. They will host Harbor on Friday, Feb. 5; travel to Soquel on Tuesday, Feb. 9; and play at home against undefeated St. Francis on Thursday, Feb. 11. All games will start at 7 p.m.
Girls
The San Lorenzo Valley High girls team is 2-7 in the SCCAL after losing to four teams ranked ahead of the Cougars in the standings.
Sierra Clark had nine points and 23 rebounds in a 54-27 loss to league-leading Santa Cruz. The team also fell to Aptos, 52-38, on Feb. 3.
With three games remaining, the Cougars are led by Clark, with 15 points per game, and Olivia Ambris, who averages more than 10 points per contest.
