Following an abysmal first-half shooting performance Tuesday, Manteca battled back to take a brief third-quarter lead but fell prey to multiple Lodi runs in a 52-45 win for the Flames in non-league girls basketball action at Winter Gym.
The Buffaloes (0-1) were just 4 of 17 from the field in the first half.
“For as poorly as we shot in the first half, to only be down six at halftime I wasn’t too down on it,” Manteca coach Ryan Bono said. “I thought defensively we played well.
“Lodi was able to knock down some key 3-pointers and then we would get a defensive lapse as a team.”
Late in the third quarter the Buffaloes capped a 10-1 run when Jayda Jackson grabbed a rebound and drove coast to coast for a 30-29 lead, their first lead of the night. Jackson had eight of her 13 points in that run and finished with nine rebounds, two assists and a steal.
Eight of those points in the run were on drives.
“We finally became aggressive in attacking the rim and drawing fouls,” Jackson said. “And that really contributes in how we came back.”
After Lodi (1-0) took the lead back with a 3-pointer by Annette Vasquez, Sarah Inderbitzin tied the game back up for Manteca off of an assist by Simran Kaur.
“In the first half we settled for jump shots,” Bono said. “In the second half we attacked and that is when we made our runs. And then we got tired and that is when we stopped attacking.
“We got close and would settle for a jumper and they would go down and make a bucket. We are an attacking team and have to be aggressive at all times.”
The Buffaloes came within three points twice in the fourth quarter due in part to the aggressive play of Rhiannon Genilla (11 rebounds, steal) who had eight of her team-high 16 points in the final period.
“We didn’t come out strong,” Genilla said. “But then we capitalized on their mistakes and tried to create our own energy and our own momentum.
Lodi came up with a pair of key 3-pointers from Zoe Faulkner (10 points) and Marissa Fabian (game-high 18 points) in the fourth period.
“We hit some shots tonight at the right time,” Flames coach Brandon Shea said. “They were able to come back and then we would hit a couple of shots and get a run going.
“After our defense let them back in we were able to get some good stops and rebounds. They have a good scrappy team so we were lucky to get away with this one.”
Sophomore
Manteca 30, Lodi 28
After taking a comfortable 20-6 lead at halftime, the Buffaloes withstood a ferocious second half rally by the Flames.
Victoria Villalvazo and Paige Peterson (10 rebounds) made seven points apiece for Manteca and Raelene Finley added five steals.
