The size and strength of Las Lomas High School of Walnut Creek proved to be too much for the Alameda High School (AHS) men’s basketball team in the North Coast Section (NCS) semifinal matchup Wednesday, Feb. 22.

The Hornets got off to a great start. They led 16-7 at the end of the first quarter and 17-7 early in the second period. But the second quarter belonged to the Knights. After AHS led 17-7, the Hornets’ largest lead of the game, Las Lomas went on a 16-point run to take a 23-17 lead. The Knights outscored the Hornets 25-8 in the second quarter and led 32-24 at halftime. The Hornets were unable to overcome the halftime deficit and lost the game 72-66.

The Knights controlled the paint for much of the game thanks to 6-foot-8 senior Mike Wood, 6-foot-6 senior Jack Halpin, and 6-foot-7 sophomore Julian Vaucher. The senior duo combined for 14 of the Knights 16 offensive rebounds — nine for Halpin and five for Wood. Vaucher led the team with four of Las Lomas’ seven blocks. Wood and Lapin both scored 10 points, and Vaucher contributed 11 points.

Jake Davis led the Knights with 28 points in the game. The senior guard went 4-for-8 from behind the 3-point line and also had four steals.

AHS was able to keep the game close thanks to senior guard Gabe Garcia. In his last game as a member of the Alameda Hornets, Garcia, the team captain, led the Hornets with 22 points. AHS junior Jackson Yep scored 11 points in the contest.

The Hornets season ends with a 22-7 overall record in Miles Tarver’s first season as head coach. This was the furthest the Hornets men’s basketball team advanced in the NCS playoffs since the 2017-2018 season (28-6) where they also lost in the Div. II semifinals, 60-48, to Bishop O’Dowd of Oakland. That season, the Hornets qualified and won the Div. II NorCal playoffs. They defeated St. Mary’s of Stockton, 76-66, in the NorCal final. They lost to Crossroads of Santa Monica, 59-53, in the Div. II state final (https://alamedasun.com/news/hornets-miss-state-title-six-points,” March 27, 2018).

The Hornets did not qualify for the Div. II NorCal tournament this year.