King’s Academy Wins DIII NorCal Title

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The King's Academy will be playing in it's first CIF State Championship Game at Golden I Arena in Sacramento. Tuesday night PH NorCal was on hand to watch as the Knights handed defeat to a Palo Alto team the wouldn't go away. 70-65</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The King's Academy got off to a good start going on a 8-0 run from the tip-off. [player_tooltip player_id='2335031' first='Caedmon' last='Dickson'] 6'5 unsigned senior knocked down the games first bucket with a long 3ptr, with an assist from 6'0 2026 PG, [player_tooltip player_id='1826998' first='Xavier' last='Barnett'], while on the other end 6'4 Freshman [player_tooltip player_id='2484356' first='Boss' last='Mhoon'] blocked Palo Alto's first shot attempt to set the tone for the King's defense early on with good help on the weak side, and switching on [player_tooltip player_id='1772930' first='Jorell' last='Clark'] 6'1 unsigned guard for Paly, giving him a lots of attention. 15-7 after the first quarter.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It looked like King's Academy game plan was to contain Clark by throwing different looks, and defenders at the Paly do it all guard. Sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='2352692' first='Adrian' last='Barnett'] had first crack, face guarding him up court, and what looked like a Box and 1 defense. Paly did get things going when Clark used his strength, and dribble to get closer to the rim drawing fouls, getting to the free throw line, and dishing out assists to Jai Wadhwani 6'5 post player for Paly. 31-22 King's Half-time.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Palo Alto's best quarter came in the third when [player_tooltip player_id='2048164' first='Gavin' last='Haase'] 6'1 Senior guard started to find open spots, and good looks for long 3's, one from the top, and another in the corner, he had 8pts in the quarter. The lefty drove it into the lane for a paint jumper to give Paly some life going into the 4th quarter. That seemed to help free up Clark who was up to 25 points, hitting mid-range jumpers, and finishing drives with the inside-hand midway through the 3rd quarter. 49-45 King's.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Heading into the 4th qtr, Paly's Clark would go into attack mode making a couple of 3's, and strong inside hand drives that resulted in a brief lead that got the Knight's attention. The King's Academy started moving the ball better on offense, running set plays, working the clock, securing rebounds after turning up the defense. King's is at its best when Barnett sets the offense. [player_tooltip player_id='1826998' first='Xavier' last='Barnett'] had a couple strong takes to the basket knowing he would be difficult to defend. They ran some isolation plays for Mhoon, using his dribble, he got into the paint for a little fade away paint jumper, then he worked the baseline for a key reverse layup. Dickson knocked down a key 3ptr (5) for the game with an assist from Barnett, grabbed a key rebound to seal the deal. The King's Academy will play in the CIF State DIII title game against San Gabriel Academy</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Game Standouts</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2335031' first='Caedmon' last='Dickson'] 6'6 Unsigned Senior, W/F, King's Academy: 20pts, 5-3's, 5 rebs.<br>[player_tooltip player_id='1826998' first='Xavier' last='Barnett'] 6'0 2026 PG, King's Academy: 16pts, multiple assists<br>[player_tooltip player_id='2484356' first='Boss' last='Mhoon'] 6'4 2028, G/F, Kings Academy: 20pts, 5rebs, 3s, 3a, 1b<br>[player_tooltip player_id='1772930' first='Jorell' last='Clark'] 6'1 Unsigned Guard, Palo Alto, 39pts</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->