SANTA CRUZ >> Aptos High’s boys basketball team gets after it on defense.

The Mariners held an opponent to under 50 points for the seventh time this season — each stellar effort has ended with a win — to advance from the first round of the 11th annual Aptos/Santa Cruz Warriors NorCal Tournament.

Senior guard/forward Isaiah Ackerman had 22 points, seven rebounds, three steals, and three blocks, and the Mariners rolled past Pioneer 59-47 at Kaiser Permanente Arena, home of the NBA G League’s Santa Cruz Warriors, on Thursday.

“We jumped out really well,” Mariners coach Brian Bowyer said. “We got a nice, big lead early and were able to hold it. Pioneer was able to figure some stuff out in the second half, really got into us and played well, but we were kinda able to keep in the 15 to 17-point range. I thought we shot the ball pretty well. I thought we played well.”

Ackerman scored 12 points in the first quarter and had 16 by the half, including a dunk, and senior guard Ryan Solorio drained three 3-pointers in the second quarter to help stake the Mariners to a 34-13 lead.

“Ryan hit three threes for us in the first half,” Bowyer said. “That kinda spread stuff out to kinda keep our lanes open a little bit on our penetrations. That helped us a lot.”

The Mariners never let up on defense and maintained their comfortable lead, which allowed them to empty their bench with 1:53 remaining.

Aptos (7-3) faces Los Gatos (8-1) in the semifinals on Friday at 8 p.m. Pioneer (6-3) faces Soquel (4-6) in the consolation semifinals at 2 p.m.

Senior 6-foot-8 center Owen Warmerdam, who had 10 points and 12 rebounds, believes the Mariners have a special group.

“I think we do,” Warmerdam said. “I think if we keep doing what we’re doing, and we’re going to get better as the season goes on, so I think we’re gonna be good.”

Bowyer has been elated with Warmerdam’s progress. The Mariners’ post player was a reserve last season.

“He does a great job,” he said. “He came out late coming out from football, so he’s just getting better every practice, every game. It’s great to see. We’re going to need him.”

Solorio made four 3-pointers and finished with 14 points.

Pioneer’s Derek Quan made a pair of 3s earlier, in the third to spark hopes of a comeback, especially with the Mariners making some early miscues under the Mustangs’ defensive pressure.

The Mariners committed five turnovers in the third quarter, but they kept their double-digit lead thanks to Warmerdam’s three putbacks.

Sam Stepan scored 15 points to lead the Mustangs.

Los Gatos 61, Soquel 59, OT

SANTA CRUZ — The Knights rallied from a 13-point deficit in the fourth quarter to force overtime against the defending Central Coast Section Division I champion, but lost their opener in the 11th annual Aptos/Santa Cruz Warriors NorCal Tournament on Thursday.

It’s the second time this season that the Knights have played a heralded opponent down to the wire. They coughed up a 21-point lead in a 51-50 loss to defending CIF Division IV state champion Monterey at the 68th Emmett Thompson Memorial Dad’s Club Tournament on Dec. 7.

“Every game is a good learning experience, a good test,” Wildcats coach Nick Ward said. “Those guys (the Knights) are good. They’re strong, they’re physical, and they hit shots.”

Soquel (4-6) faces Pioneer (6-3) in the consolation semifinals on Friday at 2 p.m.

“Moral victories are getting old, but we’re doing a good job of staying in the game with energy,” said Chris Christensen, the Knights’ first-year head coach. “That’s all I ask right now. Our seniors our learning to play basketball with synergy, which is a challenge for us. It’s gonna take us the whole preseason to get there.

“And I think that’s where we fall flat. When the games get tight, you gotta be able to execute in the half court, and we’re just not all five on the same page enough.”

Soquel’s Steely Deans put some English on his highlight reel, off-balance layup to deadlock the score at 53-all with 1.8 second left in regulation.

Seniors Danny Greene and Osha Moloney each scored four points for the Wildcats (8-1) in the extra stanza.

Senior guard Nico Ramirez, who sat out Friday’s game with an ongoing eye injury, was back in the lineup and wearing goggles. He scored five points in overtime for the Knights.

Deans made a free throw with 1:05 left in OT to knot the score at 59-all with 1:05 left, but Moloney made a layup with 2.6 seconds left for the victory. Soquel called a timeout with 2.2 on the clock, but was unable to get a shot off on its final possession.

Soquel missed six free throws in the second half and one in overtime.

Nolen Westfall scored 16 points for Soquel. Ramirez made three 3s and scored 14 points. Deans added 10 points. Liam Wennstrom made a pair of 3s and scored eight points.

Anthony Martin made three 3s and finished with 21 points for the Wildcats. Moloney scored 16 points.

The Knights, without the services of forward/center Sam Whelan, who stepped away from the team for the season, called up several junior-varsity players to fill out their bench.

The Wildcats, who held an advantage in height and depth, saw two of their starters make early exits. Scotty Brennan, whose father, Brent, is the head football coach at University of Arizona, exited after taking a nasty landing on his second dunk with 1:04 left in the first quarter.

Brennan held onto the the rim for an extended period after his emphatic throwdown, his body parallel to the ground. When he let go, his legs caught a piece of Chase Petersen and he landed on his head. He didn’t return to action and exited the facility with his parents with 4:29 remaining in the third quarter.

Wildcats junior Will Campbell picked up a technical and his fifth foul with 3:00 left in regulation.