Big fourth quarter lifts Golden Valley past Livingston in basketball

Like many teams early in the season, the Golden Valley High School boys basketball team is far from a finished product. The Cougars have suffered plenty of ups and downs as a new collection of players learn how to play together.

Senior Collin Hayes and junior Saahil Malhi came up big in the fourth quarter Monday night to lift the Cougars to a 64-56 win over Livingston at Cougar Arena.

Hayes scored five consecutive points to jump-start a 21-7 run that broke open a 43-43 tie midway through the fourth quarter. Hayes scored nine of his game-high 20 points in the final quarter.

“I think we’re learning something every game,” he said. “We’re getting better, but we have a long way to go.”

The Cougars (2-3) overcame a long-range assault by Livingston, which made 10 three-pointers. Josh Penrod led the Wolves (3-2) with five three-pointers and 19 points. Sophomore point guard Kevin Alvarez made four three-pointers and scored 19 points.

Livingston was done in by its 31 turnovers. The Wolves turned over the ball 10 times in the first quarter but only trailed 8-7 because Golden Valley made just 4 of 20 shots.

“I think we missed 12 shots from the 2-foot range,” Golden Valley coach Keith Hunter said. “It felt like we’re playing well and we were in control and you look up at the scoreboard and see that the score is 2-0 or 4-2.”

The Cougars opened an 18-9 lead after David Pelayo sank a three-pointer with 4:57 left in the second quarter. However, the Wolves closed the first half with a 14-4 run to take a 23-22 halftime lead. Penrod and Alvarez combined to score nine of the 14 points with three three-pointers.

Penrod, Alvarez and Damien Albores drained threes in the final 1:40 of the third quarter to help the Wolves close with a 9-0 run and take a 37-35 lead.

Malhi gave the Cougars a spark by scoring all 12 of his points in the fourth quarter. He hit a three-pointer early and later drove for a layup that gave Golden Valley a 41-40 lead.

“Saahil made an impact with his energy,” Hunter said. “He came in the game and brought the energy we were lacking.”

The Cougars also made 10 of 14 free throws in the fourth quarter to help them pull away.

Hayes said players are still finding their roles on the team, including him as a leader as one of two returning seniors.

“I’ve got to make sacrifices,” Hayes said. “I can’t worry about how I look. I can’t try to be cool. I’ve got to step up and make sure everyone takes care of business.”

This story was originally published December 8, 2015 at 10:24 PM with the headline "Big fourth quarter lifts Golden Valley past Livingston in basketball."