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It took a couple of wins last week to clinch it, but when the Willow Glen boys basketball team knocked off Lincoln 56-42 last Friday night they had it locked up—a piece of the league championship in the West Valley Division of the Blossom Valley Athletic League.
The Rams had dropped a 56-48 decision to Branham to open the week, forcing them into must-win situations against Evergreen Valley on Thursday and Lincoln on Friday.
But when a must-win was called for, that's just what the Rams did. They edged Evergreen Valley 55-51, then handled Lincoln on the final night of the regular season.
Branham, meanwhile, was winning too, leaving the Rams and Bruins locked in a first-place tie with matching 12-2 records. Branham finished the year with a 55-44 win over Evergreen.
The Rams locked up their piece of the title with the 14-point win over the Lions on Friday. Justin Johnson led Willow Glen with 18 points in the game, and Will Howsman was close behind with 17. Max Gourd joined the two in double digits with 11.
Johnson did most of his damage at the free-throw line. The senior guard had a three-pointer among his three field goals, but he added 11 points at the charity stripe. Howsman had a three among six buckets, and he added four points at the line. Gourd also had a three and dropped four free throws.
Keith Doleshel supported with nine points in the Willow Glen win, and Steve Rebagliati had a point.
The Rams took control early by opening up a 19-11 first-quarter lead. Willow Glen was up by just seven heading into the fourth but doubled Lincoln's seven points by cashing in at the line to win by 14.
A night earlier, it was a balanced scoring attack that sparked the Rams to the three-point win over Evergreen Valley. Howsman led the Rams with 14 points, Rebagliati hit 13, Doleshel tossed in 12 and Johnson added 10, including his club's only three-pointer. Doleshel led the Rams at the line with six free throws.
Justin Ble rounded out the Willow Glen scoring with six points.
The Rams, 13-11 for the year, had opened the week with a tough 56-48 loss to Branham. Willow Glen took a two-point lead into the final period, but the Bruins outscored the Rams 22-12 in the fourth to win by eight.
Rebagliati led all Willow Glen scorers with 13 points, and Howsman added 12. Johnson and Doleshel finished with eight apiece, and Gourd hit seven, including a three.
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Photograph by Jacqueline Ramseyer