Placer ends Livingston’s season with playoff loss

A slow start hurt the Livingston High girls basketball team as they fell to Placer 63-54 in the first round of the Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV playoffs on Tuesday night.

The 12th-seeded Wolves (19-10) were led by senior Sharn Sahota, who scored a game-high 26 points.

Livingston didn’t have an answer for Placer’s San Diego State-bound Bayless Vanderdoes. The 6-foot-1 senior did most of her damage from the perimeter in the first half and then went down to the block in the second half. She finished with 25 points.

“They put her down low in the second half and I think she had nine free throws,” Livingston coach Nina Garcia said. “I think half of their team was 5-10 or taller.”

The Hillmen started the game scoring the first seven points and never trailed throughout. The Wolves cut the lead to five points at the half as Sahota started catching fire.

“Sharn was great tonight,” Garcia said. “She started slow. She didn’t score in the first quarter, but then took off from there. Every basket, she had to earn.”

Placer will travel to No. 4 Sonora on Tuesday. The Wildcats defeated No. 13 Bear River 59-35 on Tuesday night.

It was a great season for Livingston, which saw the 2016 banner go up in the gym Tuesday in honor of the Western Athletic Conference co-championship the Wolves won this season.

“It was a great run for us,” Garcia said. “My goal for them was to win a league championship before they left high school and they were able to do it. Tonight we had our mess-ups and we started slow, but I like the way we finished strong.”

This story was originally published February 23, 2016 at 10:18 PM with the headline "Placer ends Livingston’s season with playoff loss."