THORNTON — The book is out there on Holy Family.
It’s a matter of the opposition taking the time to read it, because it’s closer to “War and Peace” than it is the Cliff’s Notes version of your favorite read.
“We have to continue to adjust and continue to improve,” said Tigers coach Pete Villecco, who watched his No. 1 team pull away from The Pinnacle on Monday night for a 62-45 non-league win.
“Their dribble-penetration was a virus to our defense and we have to fix that.”
With a number of opposing coaches and players in the stands scouting, including Jefferson Academy coach Mark Sharpley — who brings his No. 3 Jaguars into Holy Family on Friday night for a critical late-season Metro League game — Villecco and the Tigers know nothing is guaranteed at this point.
The Tigers, who edged The Pinnacle by a point at home last season, couldn’t shake the pesky Timberwolves even without sharp-shooting guard Chase Gonzales. Gonzales, who tore his ACL as a sophomore, made a cut and slipped on the floor midway through the second quarter and the his 22 points per game never returned to the lineup.
“That was a big blow when he went down and he would have helped us down the stretch for sure,” said Timberwolves coach Lou Vullo, whose team is 12-4 and 8-1 in the Frontier League. “They fought hard, gathered and played together. This will be a lesson learned, you know, defense definitely wins championships.”
Holy Family didn’t let up when Gonzales left the game, but the T-Wolves got creative without their leader, and with dribble-drives and slick moves to the basket were able to find holes in the Tigers defense for easy lay-ups.
“They played for him after that,” said Tigers senior David Sommers, who led all scorers with 19 points. “Ryan (Willis) knows exactly how that feels and that was pretty tough.”
Holy Family (17-0) finally got some separation in the fourth quarter. The Tigers free-throw bugaboo didn’t come into play nearly as much as it did in the previous nail-biter against No. 2 Colorado Academy, and they knocked down 23- of 33 on the night, including 10 of 16 in the final eight minutes.
It was a balanced attack after Sommers, including 13 from Luke Golter and 10 each from Chris Helbig and Devlin Granberg.
“We always know that when you play in the road, it’s tough,” Villecco said. “There is challenges on the road and they gave us their best shot and we had to weather two storms. I’m proud of my kids, especially the way they played in the second half.”
Eliseo Carrizales led The Pinnacle with 10 points off the bench and David Pinela chipped in with nine points.
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Holy Family 62, The Pinnacle 45
At The Pinnacle
HOLY FAMILY (17-0)
Chris Helbig 2 5-8 10, Alex Comeaux 1 0-0 2, Luke Golter 5 2-3 13, David Sommers 5 8-10 19, Ryan Willis 0 0-0 0, Brennon Lee 0 0-0 0, Austin Brown 3 2-4 8, Devlin Granberg 2 6-8 10, Nick Kreutzer 0 0-0 0. Totals 18 23-33 62.
THE PINNACLE (12-4)
Chase Gonzales 3 0-1 6, Sansom Ouk 2 0-0 6, Sam Allen 3 2-4 8, Josh Brown 0 0-4 0, Eliseo Carrizales 2 6-6 10, David Pinela 3 3-6 9, Zee Blank 1 2-2 4, Jayden Reyes 1 0-0 2. Totals 15 13-23 45.
Score by quarters:
Holy Family 13 15 12 22 — 62
The Pinnacle 12 16 8 9 — 45
3-point field goals — Holy Family (3): Helbig, L. Golter, Sommers; The Pinnacle (2): Ouk 2. Total fouls — Holy Family 23, The Pinnacle 26. Fouled out — Carrizales, Blank. Intentional foul — Blank.
