Foothill’s ‘revenge tour’ ends with loss to Elk Grove in state boys basketball final

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SACRAMENTO — Foothill’s boys basketball team didn’t quit after losing in the CIF-SS semifinals. The Knights didn’t quit after trailing by 20 points in the second round of the CIF State SoCal Regional playoffs. And they didn’t quit Saturday night in the CIF State Division II championship game despite mounting challenges.

The Knights didn’t make a 3-pointer in the first half and waited until 5:37 left in the third quarter to strike from beyond the arc against an opponent that found its range early and often.

Yet despite the obstacle, Foothill was within four points of Elk Grove with just over a minute left in regulation at Golden 1 Center.

The Knights just couldn’t get any closer.

Elk Grove, Northern California’s No. 1 seed, held off the Foothill 62-56 in the title game to end one of the Knights’ greatest and most surprising seasons.

Grant Golonka, left, celebrates with teammate Isaiah King #2 of Elk Grove after defeating Foothill 62-56 to win the CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)

Mikey Mazurie #23 of Foothill drives to the basket against Cruz Billings #2 of Foothill in the second half of a CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)

Cruz Billings #2 of Foothill drivers to the basket against Elk Grove in the second half of a CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)

Grant Golonka #24 of Elk Grove celebrates after defeating Foothill 62-56 to win the CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Libby Cline Birmingham, Contributing Photographer)

Ameere Britton #20 of Elk Grove drives to the basket against Jacob Horton #1 of Foothill in the second half of a CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Libby Cline Birmingham, Contributing Photographer)

Marco Manzi #3 of Foothill and teammate Anthony Marinelli #5 of Foothill walk toward the bench as Elk Grove defeated Foothill 62-56 to win the CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Libby Cline Birmingham, Contributing Photographer)

Jacob Horton #1 of Foothill drives to the basket in the first half of a CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game against Elk Grove at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Libby Cline Birmingham, Contributing Photographer)

Head coach Yousof Etemadi of Foothill reacts against Elk Grove in the second half of a CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)

Elk Grove fans in the second half of a CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game between the Foothill and the Elk Grove at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Libby Cline Birmingham, Contributing Photographer)

Jacob Horton #1 of Foothill drives to the basket against Elk Grove in the second half of a CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)

Carlo Billings #13 of Foothill scrambles for the loose ball against Grant Golonka #24 of Elk Grove in the second half of a CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)

Jacob Horton #1 of Foothill takes a shot as he drives to the basket past DaJon Lott Jr. #21 of Elk Grove in the first half of a CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Libby Cline Birmingham, Contributing Photographer)

Foothill looks on as Elk Grove celebrates after defeating Foothill 62-56 to win the CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)

Marco Manzi #3 of Foothill looks to drive past Karlos Zepeda #3 of Elk Grove in the first half of a CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Libby Cline Birmingham, Contributing Photographer)

Braedyn Bernhard #15 of Foothill shoots over Casey Kendall #21 of Foothill in the second half of a CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)

Marco Manzi #3 of Foothill scrambles for the loose ball against Ameere Britton #20 of Elk Grove in the second half of a CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Libby Cline Birmingham, Contributing Photographer)

Elk Grove fans in the second half of a CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game against Foothill at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)

Cruz Billings #2 of Foothill walks past as Elk Grove celebrates after defeating Foothill 62-56 to win the CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)

Jacob Horton #1 of Foothill takes a shot over the head of Karlos Zepeda #3 of Elk Grove in the first half of a CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Libby Cline Birmingham, Contributing Photographer)

Official in the second half of a CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game between the Foothill and the Elk Grove at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)

Cruz Billings #2 of Foothill controls the ball against Elk Grove in the second half of a CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)

Marco Manzi #3 of Foothill controls the ball against Elk Grove in the second half of a CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)

Cruz Billings #2 of Foothill drives to the basket against Elk Grove in the first half of a CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Libby Cline Birmingham, Contributing Photographer)

Head coach Dustin Monday, left, of Elk Grove shakes hands with head coach Yousof Etemadi of Foothill after Elk Grove defeated Foothill 62-56 to win the CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)

Head coach Yousof Etemadi of Foothill reacts in the first half of a CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Libby Cline Birmingham, Contributing Photographer)

Foothill fan in the second half of a CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game against Elk Grove at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)

Cruz Billings #2 of Foothill loses the ball against Elk Grove in the first half of a CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)

Head coach Yousof Etemadi of Foothill walks back toward the bench against Elk Grove in the second half of a CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)

Foothill takes on Elk Grove in the second half of a CIF State Division II boys basketball state championship game at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday, March 12, 2022. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Pasadena Star-News/ SCNG)

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“This was kind of our revenge tour,” said Foothill senior guard Cruz Billings, who scored a game-high 23 points and added five assists. “We came up short in Southern Section, so we had to come out with a different drive, different attitude (in state). We just competed every game.

“We knew that we always had a chance to win every game, no matter what the score was, no matter how much we were down. We just kept our foot on the gas.”

Foothill (31-4) lost to Long Beach Poly 50-45 in the Southern Section Division 2AA semifinals but bounced back to reach its first state title game. The Knights highlighted the regional run by rallying from 20 points to beat Carlsbad in triple overtime, a comeback Billings said defined a team that set Foothill’s record for victories in a season.

Foothill guard Jacob Horton made a 3-pointer with 1:47 left in the fourth quarter to trim Elk Grove’s lead to 52-48 but a subsequent miss by the Knights forced them to foul in an effort to stop the clock.

Elk Grove (28-6) responded by putting the Knights away at the foul line. The Thundering Herd made 15 of 22 free throws (68 percent) in the fourth quarter en route to their first state title.

The most significant numbers came from Foothill’s 3-point shooting. The Knights went 0 for 7 from beyond the arc in the first half and finished 3 for 18 (17 percent).

Elk Grove’s shooting was strikingly better. The Thundering Herd sank four 3-pointers in the first half and four more in the second half to finish 8 of 17 (47 percent).

The guard trio of Ameere Britton (20 points), Karlos Zepeda (17 points) and Jordan Hess (14 points) combined for all eight 3s and each had their key moments.

Elk Grove’s largest lead of the game was nine points with 22 seconds left.

“The difference in the game is that we shot 3 for 18 (on 3-pointers),” Foothill coach Yousof Etemadi said. “(Our) guys don’t really give up. They believe and they kept going until the clock stopped.”

“I don’t think anybody expected us to get to this stage outside of us,” he added.

Billings’ brother, Carlo, finished with 11 points while Horton added 10.

The Knights increased their defensive pressure in the second half, and at times the tempo. They hung tough in the rebound category despite the presence of 6-foot-8 DaJon Lott Jr., who grabbed 12 rebounds and blocked four shots.

But as Etemadi left the postgame interview, he credited Foothill’s improved culture for developing a tenacious style that fueled the state run.

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“We do a lot of stuff together,” the third-year coach said. “We do yoga. We do meditation. We go to the park. We go run at the beach. We do a lot of different things.”

Including challenging for a state championship Saturday.

by
on March 13, 2022

Foothill’s ‘revenge tour’ ends with loss to Elk Grove in state boys basketball final

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