Analy pushes record to 5-0 with wins over Rancho, Novato
The Analy Flying Tigers stayed perfect on the preseason basketball circuit last week, logging lopsided victories over Rancho Cotate and Novato.
The wins pushed Analy’s record to 5-0.
“We’ve really competed in our first five games; the team is playing hard and giving their best effort each night,” Tigers coach Brett Page said. “The nice thing is we have a handful of guys that can score each night. The team is unselfish and is finding the better shot on most possessions.”
The Tigers will resume pre-league action in the annual Brett Callan Memorial Tournament hosted by Casa Grande on Dec. 17-19. The Tigers open the Callan tourney on Thursday, Dec. 17 in a 6:30 p.m. tip-off against Miramonte.
“We’ll be tested against Miramonte, a perennial Division-3 playoff team,” Page predicted. “The tournament is filled with talented teams and should be a good opportunity for us to see what we need to work on.”
Analy showcased its run and gun style of play last week, beginning with a Dec. 7 visit to Rancho Cotate. The Tigers jumped out to a good start in the opening quarter in a 15-6 run, before taking a 32-23 lead into the halftime locker room. Analy iced the contest with a 45-15 explosion in the second half en route to a 77-38 win.
Aidan Toner-Rogers paced the attack with a season-high 29 points, seven rebounds, 3 assists, 4 steals. Other great contributions came from Travis Holmes (14 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists), Nick Fujii (13 points, 3 assists), Dominic Tripodi (7 points, 3 boards, 4 assists, 3 steals), Aidan Vermuelen (4 points, 3 rebounds, 2 steals) and Jordan Armstrong (4 points, 5 rebounds).
The Tigers played host to visiting Novato in the home opener on Dec. 8, dominating from the opening tip en route to an 83-41 romp.
“Novato came out in a zone (defense) and I thought we might take the opportunity to shoot a lot of threes,” Page noted, citing outstanding play from reserves Anthony Narvaez and Zach Binsfeld. “But the guys were patient and got the ball inside and took great shots.”
Top scorers included Holmes (19 points), Fujii (18 points), Armstrong (13 points, 9 rebounds) and Tripodi (12 points, 5 rebounds).
