Menlo’s varsity boys basketball team was narrowly defeated 57-52 in the CCS Division IV final at Mission College by No. 1 seed Carmel on Saturday, Feb. 24. In the first half, the teams battled back and forth until the Padres grabbed a lead in the second quarter. To close the first half, the Knights went on a run to cut Carmel’s lead to 30-29, capped off by junior Tate Cohen’s three-point buzzer-beater. Cohen led the team in scoring with 16 points.
After the break, Menlo’s momentum continued as the team built a 49-40 point lead heading into the fourth quarter. However, in the final eight minutes, Menlo was held to only three points, opening the door for Carmel. The Padres capitalized thanks to junior Hudson Rutherford’s timely beyond-the-arc shooting, putting the Knights away in crunch time.
Although the heart-wrenching loss ended Menlo’s impressive CCS playoff run, the Knights will get their opportunity to compete in the CIF Division IV State Championship against Natomas High School on Tuesday, Feb. 27.
