Bulldogs capture Stagg Tournament championship
Senior Josh Brakkee drives to the basket.
December 13, 2013
Tracy beat their cross town rival, West High in the Stagg Tournament championship game by one point in overtime.
Tracy went undefeated beating the host Stagg first round, then Sonora, and then West in the championship.
Jeff Nguyen tied the championship game with a three-pointer to force the game into overtime. Druce Asah scored the winning shot in overtime giving Tracy the win.
“We were leading most of the game and had control,” coach Junior Cueva said. “We gave up the lead and then forced overtime. I was happy for the team, they played their hearts out.”
Tracy High lost by a few points in the Foundation game against West High on Dec. 2. This was their first time playing against this team this season. The Foundation game is tradition between Tracy and West as a way to kick off the upcoming season and used as a fundraiser for the section.
Although Tracy didn’t win this game, they realized their mistakes and corrected them for the next games. Tracy’s improvement was shown when they came back a beat West in the Stagg Tournament.
“We played hard, but we had made some crucial mistakes in the second half of the foundation game,” Takahashi said. “Our turnovers were a big part of why we lost.”
The next time Tracy will play West High is at Tracy High, on Jan. 10.
“The thing I’m excited most about is the excitement what the crowd is going to bring,” Brakkee said. “It’s going to be a crazy and fun game.”
“I expect to switch up defenses from man-to-man to zone defense to make them shoot more from the outside and stop their drive to the basket,” Takahashi said.
Both coach Cueva and many of the players feel that the tournament has helped prepare them for league.
“We play in a tough league where every night will be a close tough game, so being able to win one-point games will give us some confidence,” Cueva said.
“Our team has improved these last couple of games. We are still trying to work out the kinks in everyone’s roles,” Brakkee said.
Tracy High’s next game will be at Livermore on Dec. 18.
