SAN JOSE >> Santa Teresa has made a habit of coming back from big deficits at home this season.

But there would be no such comeback on Friday night in San Jose. This time, Santa Teresa welcomed in league-leading Christopher, and the Cougars took a 12-point lead into the halftime break.

Christopher mashed the accelerator from there, winning the third quarter 22-5 to go up by 29 points. That was too many to come back from even for Santa Teresa, and the Saints lost 75-43.

“I knew in the second half we had to really be on point being connected on defense, because I think they hit 13 threes in the second half in one game,” Christopher coach Adam Sax said.

“So we knew that they were very capable of coming back. We definitely had to be ready to go.”

That they were. The Cougars (19-2, 9-0) were the best team in the Blossom Valley Athletic League’s Mt. Hamilton Division entering Friday, and they looked like it against a team that has quickly gained a reputation for slaying the best teams in the league.

Whereas other opponents found themselves at the mercy of Santa Teresa’s second-half magic, Christopher threw a knockout punch. It’s hard to make a late-round comeback when your back is flat on the canvas.

“We felt pretty good at halftime only being down 12,” Santa Teresa coach Patrick Judge said. “But then they come out in the second half and our first five possessions, we had four turnovers, all of which led to easy layups. That’s tough, to go from 12 to 20. That’s pretty tough to come back from, especially against a good team like Christopher.

“We like the comeback. But Christopher is too good of a team. Too big, well-coached, good guards. Hats off to them.”

No individual player overwhelmed Santa Teresa (10-12, 4-6 BVAL) on Friday. The Cougars instead came in waves, overcoming the Saints with the excellence of their depth.

Center Jaxen Robinson led Christopher with 22 points, doing his work down low and at the free-throw line. Quinn Ledesma-Old Elk and Anton Mendezona each chipped in 11 points.

Sam Guenther also reached double figures with 10 points, and Tyler Green added nine.

“We had a lot of returning guys from last year,” Sax said. “We’ve got six seniors, so it’s an experienced group. So they really connected, and the chemistry has always been great. We don’t have that one transcendent player that scores over 20 points a game every day. It’s a little bit different.”