Santa Barbara Holiday Classic Day Two: Santa Barbara Falls to Dougherty Valley 73-70 in Overtime

The Dons struggled in the fourth quarter and overtime as visiting Dougherty Valley captured a thrilling 73-70 victory over Santa Barbara on Day two of the Santa Barbara Holiday Classic.

Rashod Cotton Jr. knocked down a contested three-pointer from the corner with five seconds remaining to tie the game at 65. Owen Horn had a chance to win it at the buzzer for Santa Barbara but his runner was off the mark and the two team’s settled in for overtime.

“Rashod is an elite scorer and he doesn’t quit. He never thought we would lose,” said Dougherty Valley coach Roy Meisner. “He kept playing to the wire, hit a big three to force overtime and then good things happened in overtime.”

Dougherty Valley got a big boost coming into the game, with CIF ruling that senior UC Davis Commit Jalen Stokes would be eligible to play for the first time this season. He matched up frequently with Santa Barbara star Luke Zuffelato, who holds multiple Division 1 offers.

Stokes fouled out with 1:01 remaining in regulation with Santa Barbara leading 60-59. He finished with a team-high 22 points.

The wildcats were not deterred by his absence. They compiled an 8-4 record this season with Stokes out of the lineup against solid competition. 

“I thought that would be a turning point for us, but I think it was a turning point for them,” said Santa Barbara High coach Greg Zuffelato. It was his first game with that team and they were out of sync a little bit with him.”

Santa Barbara was in control for the majority of the first three quarter. A steal and a layup by Diesel Lowe gave Santa Barbara a 7-2 lead with 5:30 remaining in the first quarter.

D.J. Wilson banked in a three-pointer that increased the Santa Barbara lead to 16-8 with 2:25 remaining in the first quarter. A three-pointer by Luke Zuffelato, who finished with a game-high 30 points, put Santa Barbara ahead 21-12 early in the second quarter.

However, Dougherty Valley closed the first half on a 14-9 run capped off by a transition layup by Stokes that cut the deficit to 29-26 at halftime.

A three-pointer by sophomore Cayleb Miller increased the Santa Barbara lead to 50-41 with just over a minute remaining  in the third quarter. But Dougherty Valley outscored Santra Barbara 18-11 in the fourth quarter to force overtime.

Zuffelato drained two three-pointers early in the overtime session to put Santa Barbara ahead 68-64, but Dougherty Valley responded with a 7-0 run to take control of the game.Luke Zuffelato had a chance to tie at the buzzer from near half court, but his desperation attempt went long. 

“It was like a playoff game. Last year we pulled out some miracles,” said Greg Zuffelato. “I was really proud of how we competed. We worked hard, but our shots did not go.”

Diesel Lowe scored 13 points for Santa Barbara. Carter Battle finished with ten points and was very strong defensively with three blocks.

San Marcos 74, Paraclete 24

The Royals improved to 2-0 on that Tournament with a 50-point victory.

Dos Pueblos 53, Holy Matyrs 52

Coulter Jay led the way with 17 points. Wyatt Gardiner chipped in 11 points. The Chargers improved to 1-1 in the tournament.

Oak Park 77, Bishop Diego 46

The Cardinals struggled with Oak Park’s size and dropped to 1-1 in the tournament. Crew Sjovold led Bishop Diego in scoring with 17 points.