The playoffs for the winter sports season is rapidly approaching, so it’s time for an update on the performances of Alameda athletes heading into February.

Alameda High School’s Hornets
The Alameda men’s basketball team has been impressive in 2017 winning four of its five games including a 55-42 victory over rival Encinal Saturday, Jan. 21, on the road in the Nail House. The Hornets trailed early, falling behind 10-7 at the end of the first period. 
Alameda was able to take the lead by the end of the second period as they outscored the Jets 14-7 to take a 21-17 lead at halftime. Both offenses performed well after halftime with both squads scoring 15 points in the third quarter. But the Hornets offense was too much for the Jets as Alameda put up 19 points in the final period. 

The Hornets also have wins over St. Mary’s of Albany (61-56), Piedmont (73-68 in overtime) and Arroyo of San Lorenzo (49-31) in 2017. The Hornets sport a 14-5 overall record. Alameda will play San Lorenzo tomorrow in its next contest.

Like the men’s team, the Alameda women’s basketball team also defeated Encinal Saturday, Jan. 21. The Hornets bested the Jets 45-39 at the Nail House. It was the Hornets’ second victory in 2017 in four attempts. The Hornets also beat Hayward 64-44 on Jan. 11. Alameda now has a 10-7 overall record on the season. They will take on Bishop O’Dowd tomorrow in their next contest.

Encinal High School’s Jets
The Encinal men’s basketball team is 6-11 overall on the season. They are on a five-game losing streak, but have plenty of time to change course and qualify for the North Coast Section playoffs. They will take on Tennyson of Hayward in their next contest tomorrow on the road. Although they lost to Alameda earlier this year, the Jets will have a chance at redemption when the two foes square off Feb. 11. 

The Jets’ women’s team is 8-10 on the year after a loss to Alameda. The Jets have been up and down since the New Year began. They have wins over Galileo of San Francisco (76-52) on Jan. 3, Tennyson of Hayward (66-23) on Jan. 11 and San Lorenzo (57-32) on Jan. 18. The downside is they also have four losses since the beginning of 2017 including the loss to the Hornets. The Jets will also get a rematch with their rival on Feb. 11.

St. Joseph Notre Dame High School’s Pilots
The St. Joseph Notre Dame (SJND) men’s basketball team is having another stellar season holding a 16-2 overall record. The New Year has been good to them as they have gone a perfect 7-0 in 2017. Each victory has been by double figures with the smallest margin of victory a 59-46 win over Bentley of Lafayette on Jan. 5. The defending Div. V California State Federation (CIF) champions will take on Bentley again today in the league rematch. 

The St. Joseph women’s basketball team is 15-4 on the season. They have won eight out of nine contests in 2017. In fact, they have won 10 of their last 11 games. The Pilots have won the last three games (against College Prep of Oakland, Sonoma Academy of Santa Rosa and Redwood Cristian of San Lorenzo) by an average of 40.3 points. The team is 6-0 in the Bay Counties League East division.