Friday Showcase Game: Mountain View at Los Gatos

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Los Gatos High School in Los Gatos CA, is where Prep Hoops NorCal settled in for a Friday Night Showcase Game. It was Senior Night so the first five for Los Gatos were Seniors. A surprisingly good start, 9-3 led to a time-out. Mountain View struggled in the first qtr, but managed to get to halftime with a 22-21 lead. It was pretty much a grind it out game with neither team getting a comfortable lead. Los Gatos held a 31-28 advantage after three quarters of play, then held on for a low scoring win 37-35. Los Gatos is in first place in the Santa Clara Valley-De Anza League with a 10-1, and 18-5 overall record, while Mountain View sits in third place 8-3, 16-7 overall. Showcase Game Standouts from both teams.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Max Houghton 6'2 2023 Guard from Los Gatos</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>He's the teams leading scorer on the season averaging 11.6 per game. In this game he scored 5pt, hit one 3ptr, but did an excellent job of running the team in half-court offense, and transition. In a grind it out game running deep into the shot clock his leadership, and patience up top, settling the offense, keeping things moving was key. He has good foot speed, solid handles, he uses his body to protect the ball and is a good passer. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Tommy Ankenbrandt 6'6 2023 Forward from Los Gatos</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>He's one of the big men on this team. He had determination going after rebounds, and put backs for points. He got wide in the post, showed he could play on the perimeter using a ball fake, and hard dribble to get into the paint. He hit two big 3 pointers in a game where points were limited. 10pts, 2-3's, 5rebs, 1blk. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1264616' first='Nolan' last='Koch'] 6'4 2024 Forward from Los Gatos</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>He doesn't mind the physical play, he has the body for it, the more physical the better for Koch. He battles inside on both ends for rebounds, and put back points. He'll do battle with bigger players in the post. He proved himself to be an excellent passer from the post area often finding cutters going through, and kicking it out to perimeter shooters. He has 3pt range, hustles up court. 4pts, 6rebs, 3asts, 1stl.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Scotty Brennan 6'3 2025 W/F from Los Gatos</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>He's long, thin, and still growing. He's usually a starter we think. Brennan was productive coming off the bench with good energy. He grabbed a couple of follow up rebounds for points. He did a good job of racing up the court to fill lanes for a transition bucket. He showed 3pt range on his shot. He's an active player than can defend on the perimeter, and help in the post. 7pts, 4rebs.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Jackson Kim 6'0 2023 Guard from Mountain View</strong> (featured)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>He had solid play from the guard position. The hard playing guard has good handles, he had multiple hard takes into the paint challenging defenders unafraid of contact. He'll attack the rim from different angles, the base line, perimeter, and in transition. He's a good rebounding guard. He had 10pts the hard way, 6rebs.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Cole Palmbush 6'2 2024 Guard from Mountain View</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>On a night where points were hard to come by the teams leading scorer 13 per game, couldn't quite hit his average, though it wasn't his lack of effort. He got good looks, the game was a bit physical. He's an aggressive player who looks for his shot. He took it hard into the paint, he can pull-up off the dribble for mid-range jumpers, and he can hit the 3ptr. He'll pass and play with good energy. 7pts, 2-3's.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Jayden Minor 6'0 2025 Guard from Mountain View</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>He's effective as a combo guard on this team. He's a good passer with zip on the ball, be ready. He showed an ability to run the team in half-court sets. His long strong passes up court led to a couple of transition baskets. He's a confident player with scoring ability off the dribble and pulling up for short jumpers, he has 3pt range. He has a solid body doesn't mind contact and will attack the paint, and he doesn't give up easy layups in transition. 7pts, 3asts, 1blk,1stl.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Brent Bennion 6'3 2023 Forward from Mountain View</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>He appears to be the glue guy on this team. It was our first look at Bennion, standing only 6'3 he guards bigger players, bangs the boards on both ends, runs the court in transition both ways, he'll scrap for loose balls. He'll work inside for put back points. He's a solid screener and a good passer. 2pts, 5rebs, 2stls.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->