ST. IGNATIUS: FORMER COACH LEAVES SPECIAL LEGACY
In the storied tradition of San Francisco basketball, no one was quite like Bob Drucker.
The former longtime St. Ignatius basketball coach who won eight league titles, two Central Coast Section championships and a NorCal crown died on Thanksgiving after suffering a heart attack in his Daly City home. He was 84.
“His contributions are legendary,” Bay Area sports writer Fred Baer said in an interview on Thursday. “He retired from coaching, and he still never left. He’s always continued to contribute to St. Ignatius athletics. … Bob was just an instrumental schoolmate and teammate.”
Drucker is an alumnus of St. Ignatius, graduating from the San Francisco school in 1958. He coached his first season in 1966 and won his first league championship a year after. During his 20-year run as coach, Drucker compiled a 394-150 record.
After stepping down from coaching in 1986, he remained at the school as a counselor and a teacher until 2007. He briefly returned to coaching in 2002 as an assistant coach on the St. Ignatius girls basketball team that won the CCS Division I title over league rival Archbishop Mitty.
Known as the “Wizard of Westlake,” Drucker’s ability to connect with his players was perhaps his best quality as a coach.
“He gave me some tough love when I needed it,” Theodore Joseph MacConaghy, one of Drucker’s former players, wrote in a Facebook post. “A life rich in grace and service to others.”
Though coaching basketball was where he made a name for himself, Drucker was also a talented writer. While in high school, he was the sports editor for the student newspaper Inside SI.
“He was a great athlete, but the thing people don’t really know about him was that he was a journalist,” Baer said.
Drucker is survived by his wife Kathy and his four children, Molly, Chrissy, Joe, and Katie.
Memorial services for Drucker are scheduled for 3 p.m. on Dec. 17 at St. Anne of the Sunset Catholic Church in San Francisco. A vigil will be held at 3 p.m. and a rosary will commence at 4:30 p.m. The funeral is slated to take place on Dec. 18 at noon.
– Nathan Canilao
OAKLAND TECH: LADY BULLDOGS NEED PERIMETER THREAT
Oakland Tech has arguably the most talented frontcourt in NorCal, with junior forwards Terri’A Russell and Jhai Johnson each standing at 6-foot-4 and capable of scoring 20 points, grabbing double-digit rebounds and blocking a multitude of shots.
But if the Oakland powerhouse is to reach another state championship, coach Leroy Hurt wants to see more from his guards. Mostly sophomores, the backcourt is a work in progress.
“If you haven’t played at this level, it can be a little intimidating,” Hurt said. “But I tell them that they’ve got the perfect help. So why not step up the aggression when you know you have Jhai and Terri’A backing you up down low?”
Selam Richardson, Nailah Davis and Payton Henderson each bring quickness and nascent shot-making to the court, but the coach is looking for more consistency from a backcourt whose main objective is setting up the two frontcourt stars.
They’ll try to find their groove in Minnesota this week, when the program plays Minneapolis programs De La Salle and North Community.
– Joseph Dycus
Oakland Tech head coach Leroy Hurt talks to his players during a timeout against McClatchy High during a Sabrina Ionescu girls basketball tournament match at De La Salle High School in Concord, Calif., on Saturday, Jan. 20, 2024. The fourth time state champions lost 32-45. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
RICHMOND: COACH CARTER’S SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP WITH SAMUEL L. JACKSON
Richmond basketball coach Ken Carter didn’t leave actor Samuel L. Jackson’s side during the shooting of the 2005 Hollywood movie “Coach Carter.”
For months, Jackson – who played the role of Carter in the movie – spent hours with the Richmond coach trying to perfect the role.
According to Carter, he handpicked Jackson for the role of himself.
“When the producers sat down with me and they started talking about who will portray me I wrote down one name,” Carter said. “Mr. Samuel Jackson.”
Almost 20 years after the release of the movie, the two are still close today. After coming back for his second stint at Richmond, Carter said Jackson still checks in with him to see how the team is doing.
“Our relationship is excellent,” Carter said. “He was doing a play in New York and I flew to New York to see his play. It’s just amazing and he’s always asking about the boys.”
– Nathan Canilao
Richmond basketball coach Ken Carter poses for a photo with actor Samuel L. Jackson (Photo courtesy of Ken Carter).
YGNACIO VALLEY: WOLVES IMPRESS THE BEST
Ygnacio Valley and its coach Michael Woolridge came into this season believing it could compete with the top teams in the Bay Area.
Tuesday night, the Wolves proved their confidence was not misplaced.
The Concord program pushed No. 1 ranked Salesian in a 71-65 loss, one in which Antonio Kellogg Jr. and Jalan Cody found success against the vaunted Pride defense that is coming off a NorCal Open championship and an appearance in the Open state title game.
“We’re going to keep fighting and working hard, and we’re not afraid of anybody,” Woolridge said. “If we want to be the best, then we have to play the best.”
Longtime coach Bill Mellis said his Salesian team is still a work in progress, as are most teams at this point in the season. The Pride showcased a more up-tempo offense led by speedy guard Isaiah Davis and wing Elias Obenyah, but Mellis rued the team’s defensive breakdowns.
That didn’t stop the coach from lavishing praise upon his opponent.
“I think they’re good enough to be a NCS Open team, to be honest with you,” Mellis said of YV. “That’s what we told our team, because they had no idea what they were about to face.”
– Joseph Dycus
Ygnacio Valley’s Antonio Kellogg Jr. (5) dribbles the ball against Campolindo’s Landon Fly (3) in the second half of basketball league game at Ygnacio Valley High School in Concord, Calif., on Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2024. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
SAN RAMON VALLEY: EXPECTATIONS NOT CHANGING
After losing to SoCal powerhouse St. John Bosco in the CIF NorCal Division I title game, the San Ramon Valley boys have their sights set on making it back to Golden 1 Center.
Much of the core that made a state title run last season is back, with seniors Elliot Conley, Mason Thomas and Luke Isaak returning as captains. But the Wolves lost a lot of their size and leadership when Seamus Deely, Jack Moxley and Matthew Diekmann graduated.
Their absence was evident in SRV’s season-opening 70-68 loss to Lincoln-Stockton on Saturday as the Wolves struggled defensively in the second half.
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The road won’t get any easier with state heavyweights Archbishop Riordan, Redwood, Destiny Christian Academy and Roosevelt-Eastvale on the schedule just before the start of league play.
Still, the expectations for this team have not changed.
“I had interviews with all the players before they were on the team and they had very lofty goals,” SRV coach Brian Botteen said on Saturday. “But I also told them the history of how hard it is to do things and duplicate it. We don’t have the biggest group and we’re going to have to be better in defense.
“We are going to have to understand that our schedule reflects their ambitions and their goals.”
– Nathan Canilao
San Ramon Valley guard Mason Thomas (10) drives to the basket ahead of Granada senior NaVaughn Long (2) during the fourth quarter of a NorCal Division I boys’ high school basketball game, on Tuesday, March 5, 2024, in Dublin, Calif. (D. Ross Cameron for the Bay Area News Group)
