Saratoga News Photograph by Scott Lechner Westmont's Vincent Chung feels pressure from Pioneer's Kevin Mack (24) and Mike Nakamura (32) in first-round action in the Westmont Invitational. Mack blocked this shot, and the Mustangs went on to claim a tight 44-43 win over Westmont. Wildcats win Westmont Invitational Warriors beat Panthers, Dons take consolation title By Dick Sparrer Yogi Berra would have called it "dejá vu all over again." Just as they did a year ago, Los Gatos and Willow Glen met up in the championship game of the Westmont Invitational Basketball Tournament. But the results were much different this time around. Willow Glen edged Los Gatos in overtime to win the title in the Westmont tourney last year. This time around, though, it was all Los Gatos. The Wildcats turned an 11-point halftime lead into a lopsided 27-point victory over the Rams in the 32nd annual Westmont Invitational. Los Gatos beat Prospect 55-51 and Pioneer 59-45 to move into the title game against the Rams. Willow Glen opened the tourney with wins over Fremont 56-46 and Piedmont Hills 47-44. Host Westmont ended up winning the consolation championship in its own tournament. The Warriors lost their opener 44-43 to Pioneer, but battled back with wins over Prospect (43-42) and Del Mar (51-36). Westmont was involved in a couple of thrillers before finally winning one by 15. But even the 15-point victory wasn't decided until the final period. The Warriors and Dons were tied 27-27 heading into the fourth quarter in the consolation title game. But Westmont outscored Del Mar 24-9 to pull out the victory. Junior Daniel Sherburne, who earned an all-tournament team spot, led the Warriors to the clutch win over the Dons in the tourney ender. The 6-foot-3 forward tossed in 16 points to lead a cast of six Westmont scorers. Vincent Chung, a 6-foot-1 junior guard, joined Sherburne in double digits with 10 points. Kyle Collins and Navdeep Hundel pitched in seven points apiece, Erik Cisler hit six and Feras Elrayas added five. Chung, Collins and Elrayas each popped three-pointers. Westmont, 3-2 for the year, pulled out a thrilling 43-42 win over rival Prospect a game earlier. The Warriors trailed 16-7 after a period, 21-14 at the half and 31-20 heading into the fourth before turning it on to top the Panthers 23-11 in the final quarter to pull out the one-point win. Elrayas nailed a pair of threes on his way to an 11-point game. Hundel chipped in with nine points, including a three, and Sherburne hit eight. Cisler added seven points, Collins four and Chung and Robert Li two each. Junior guard Thomas Turner had the hot hand for the Panthers with 15 points, including a three-pointer. Mike Senteio, Barry Sharpe and Slaven Moro poured in seven points each, Bryan Spratling had four and Jerome Ort hit two. The Warriors lost a 44-43 heartbreaker to Pioneer to open the tourney. Sherburne led Westmont with 15 points and Chung, Cisler and Collins added seven each. Elrayas hit five points and Hundel had two. Collins and Chung each hit three-pointers. Kevin Mack led the Mustangs to the win. The junior guard bombed 14 points, including three three-pointers. Jeff Luu had a three among his seven points and Mike Nakamura hit a pair of threes to finish with six points. Bryce Hall also had six. Prospect, meanwhile, opened the tourney with a tough 55-51 loss to ultimate tourney champion Los Gatos. Turner led the Panthers with 12 points and Gil Vasquez joined him in double digits with 10 points. Ort tossed in eight points, Kelly Stephens seven points, including a three, and Senteio six on two threes. Moro added four points and Spratling and Antonio Park hit two apiece. [ Back to Contents Page | Saratoga News Home Page | Archives ] This article appeared in the Saratoga News, December 9, 1998. ©1998 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.