Noah Thomas leads Pleasant Valley to thrilling win over Venice in CIF State Division III boys basketball championship
SACRAMENTO, Calif. - In an instant classic, Pleasant Valley beat Venice 57-53 to win the CIF State Division III boys basketball championship on Friday at the Golden 1 Center.
Vikings senior Noah Thomas scored a game-high 24 points including two clutch free throws with 25.7 seconds left to put Pleasant Valley up two possessions. Following the free throws, Venice didn’t score again.
Pleasant Valley senior Ned Joyce scored a layup and then drilled a straight-away 3-pointer to give the Vikings a 55-53 lead after Venice’s Oscar Lopez had hit a 3-pointer to put the Gondoliers up 53-50. Pleasant Valley ended the game on a 7-0 run to win the game.
The Vikings had to overcome a scorching hot shooting start from the Gondoliers who led 10-0 and 26-14 in the first half. Venice made 5 of 8 3-pointers in the first quarter. Senior Oscar Lopez made the first three 3-pointers he took in the game, clearly unphased by the NBA arena that had caused shooting struggles in the early games on Friday. Venice led 31-28 at halftime.
In the third quarter, Thomas and Venice sophomore Tyler Hunt went blow for blow. A Thomas 3-pointer gave Pleasant Valley its first lead of the game, 40-38, with 2:30 remaining in the third quarter. Thomas scored 10 third-quarter points.
Hunt put in 11 points in the third quarter for Venice. He connected on two free throws at the end of the quarter and after three, Pleasant Valley held a slight lead, 47-45.
Joyce scored 14 points in total for Pleasant Valley. Hunt finished with a team-high 22 for Venice. Lopez scored 15 points for the Gondoliers on five 3-pointers.
The victory gives Pleasant Valley its second state title in the last five years. The Vikings also claimed a state championship in 2018.
PHOTO GALLERY
(All photos by Ralph Thompson)
