Atascadero basketball upsets SLO 60-57 as Mountain League action heats up
Atascadero High’s boys basketball team came to San Luis Obispo’s gym looking to upset the Tigers early in the Mountain League season and built an early 21-point lead in the second quarter.
But the Tigers didn’t let the Greyhounds get comfortable, clawing back to a one-point margin (58-57) down the stretch of the fourth quarter.
Atascadero closed out the contest with tough defense to hold on to a 60-57 win against the Tigers (16-5, 2-2 Mountain League).
Atascadero (13-8, 2-2 Mountain) showed that it can match up with the best in San Luis Obispo County, as the Greyhounds gear up for a Friday night showdown with another strong cross-county opponent in Mission Prep (17-5, 2-1 Mountain).
“All of SLO’s losses have been to Division 1 schools, so I feel like it’s a very big win for us and we took it personally,” said Damon Mitchell, who led Atascadero with 19 points. “I feel like we came in as a team, and I tried to set up my teammates and create for them. But today, when I saw a chance, I would try to take it in and be physical.”
Mitchell, a 6-foot-2 junior, used his strength, quickness and footwork to outmaneuver SLO inside to stabilize the offense and convert layups as the Greyhounds’ lead started slipping away.
With the game on the line, Mitchell intercepted a long pass thrown by SLO senior Jace Gomes, who starred at quarterback for the Tigers, with 1.7 seconds remaining on the clock to stop SLO from throwing up a last second three-pointer to tie the game.
“I actually played safety (in football), and Cody Johnson (SLO senior guard) was a wide receiver, so I kind of knew they were going to go for him,” Mitchell said.
Shea Buckley, Atascadero’s leading scorer who’s averaging 20 points per game in his junior season, added 17 for Atascadero after pouring in 13 first half points but fouled out in the second half.
“I think we pulled it together defensively,” Buckley said. “We had a little bit of a defensive breakdown, but we came together as a team. I think our strengths are that we’re unselfish and have each other’s back. We’ve been playing together since fifth grade, and it shows on the court.”
Atascadero Coach Augie Johnston said that Buckley is “one of the best shooters that I’ve ever seen, and I think he’s probably one of the best players that’s ever played at Atascadero High School.”
Buckley had led the Greyhounds this season with 24 points in 64-53 (OT) win over Stockdale, 32 points in a 64-60 win over Roosevelt, and 25 points in 65-51 win over Nevada Union.
“He showed it as sophomore year as one of the top scorers in the county, and again this year,” Johnston said. “All of our guys are super unselfish. Obviously Shea leads us as far when we need somebody to get a bucket, but so many players stepped up tonight.”
Johnston credited his team’s defense especially for the win, and SLO’s talent.
“No matter how big our lead was going to be, the game was never over,” Johnston said. “Every single player on that team that we just played against can shoot the ball and can guard. It wasn’t really the offense as much for me. It was the defense. I think that was one of our best defensive games. I don’t remember any good looks for them.”
San Luis Obispo High’s boys basketball came into its home matchup against Atascadero having won seven of its last eight, and were fresh off of a 66-56 win on Jan. 17 over rival Mission Prep in the classic SLO-Town Showdown rivalry contest (to repeat on Feb. 4 at Mission Prep).
The Tigers were led by Beau Crew, who tallied 13 points and Gomes and Logan Missler each had 12 points. Gomes had two half-court steals in the second half that led to open court slam dunks to energize the home fans and spark the jazz band during timeouts in their renditions of “Secret Agent Man” and the “Rocky” theme song.
But Atascadero brought its A-game on the road, quickly jumping out to a 20-5 lead in the first quarter, as Buckley poured in eight quick points to open the contest and added an assist to build an early 10-0 lead. The Greyhounds widened that margin to 34-13 in the second quarter.
SLO’s comeback was fueled by pressure defense and forcing Atascadero to take tough shots as the Greyhounds 3-point marksmanship started to falter.
SLO’s Otto Vaughn drained three 3-pointers to tally nine points. Atascadero’s Isaiah Rodriguez matched him with nine points of his own.
With the top-25 nationally-ranked St. Joseph team figuring to take the Mountain League title, a close battle for second is shaping up involving four SLO County teams as Mission Prep (2-1), Arroyo Grande (2-2), San Luis Obispo (2-2) and Atascadero (2-2) all are in the mix for league runner-up.
San Luis Obispo next faces Templeton (12-10, 0-4 Mountain) on the road on Friday at 6:30 p.m. Atascadero visits Mission Prep on Friday at 6:30 p.m.
This story was originally published January 21, 2025 at 9:34 PM.
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