St. Francis frustrated St. Francis frustrated (January 20, 2006)

Boys basketball comes up short in third straight league match, falling 49-44 to Junipero Serra

By Greg Hancock

Having lost its last two games, the St. Francis boys basketball team took the court Jan. 12 hoping to even up its record in league play -- and therefore needing a win against Junipero Serra.

Despite that impetus, St. Francis found itself down by as many as 12 points against the Padres (2-2), but was able to make a dramatic second-half run due to its ability to avoid turnovers.

The run was ultimately fruitless: Serra hit a number of key shots to hold onto a hard-fought 49-44 win against the Lancers.

It was going to be a challenging night for St. Francis no matter what. First, a very good Serra team entered the night with a similar 1-2 record in league and would be equally hungry to even its record. Second, Lancers standout Wes Libuit again sat the game out because of an ankle sprain. Libuit's absence has been a key factor in recent games, and this one was no exception.

Had Libuit been healthy enough to suit up, he would have made the best match against 6-foot-5 Serra guard Decensea White. The senior hit six of his 13 shots from the field while drawing nine foul shots. He converted four of those shots en route to a team-high 16 points.

For St. Francis, the first half came with a pair of 15's: the Lancers scored a mere 15 points in the first half, and turned the ball over 15 times. Robert Bow was the only Lancer with a shooting touch for the period, scoring nine of his game-high 18 points.

The second half went better for St. Francis. Senior Adam Budelli, for instance, heated up, scoring all of his 11 points.

"In the second half, we picked up our intensity and played with more heart," says Budelli. "Our bench and our crowd started getting into it and it motivated us."

Entering the fourth quarter, the Lancers had chipped away at the lead and trailed by only two points. Serra forward Dan Mavraides, however, came out firing and scored his seven more to give the Padres a seemingly comfortable lead.

Bow and the Lancers continued to play hard. Bow's jump shot was silky smooth as he hit his first two shots of the quarter. After Budelli's layup following a missed free throw, St. Francis took its first lead of the game with just over four minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. This was the first time all night that the Serra student section was somewhat quiet.

The lead would be short-lived. With St. Francis trailing by one point late in the game, Serra's Eric Farrell hit a three-pointer with 15 seconds remaining to give the Padres a four-point lead they would not relinquish.

All night long the gym had an electricity flowing from the stands. It was a scene more reminiscent of Cameron Indoor Arena at Duke University, rather than a high school game. Both students and fans for St. Francis and Serra came ready to make some serious noise for their teams, and they did.

"Their [Serra's] intensity kind of caught us off guard," says Budelli. "But in the second half, we showed great improvement and showed that if we play hard, we can play with anyone."

There's no doubt that St. Francis will not be able to play at its highest level without Libuit. It's anticipated that the senior will be back on the court within a week.

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