Phillips, Edison deny Dos Pueblos

With 6-foot-8 Josh Phillips patrolling the paint for the Edison High boys’ basketball team, Goleta Dos Pueblos was forced to shoot from the outside.

The University of Portland commit was not going to let a shot go by him. Phillips, a senior, had seven blocked shots to go with 12 points and five rebounds, leading Edison to an 80-59 victory over Dos Pueblos in the third annual Coach Mike’s Long Shot Challenge at Corona del Mar High on Monday.

While Phillips prevented Dos Pueblos from scoring inside the paint, point guard David Atencio led the way for Edison on offense with 21 points to go with five rebounds. Edison had five players finish in double figures, producing one of its better games offensively.

“We scored 80 points and I think that’s our best offensive game of the year,” said Atencio, whose team also had a 91-point effort in a win against Perris California Military Institute on Jan. 2. “We are starting to get things rolling. We can’t take anybody lightly. We just have to focus and take it one game at a time.”

Edison (14-5) has won 12 of its last 14 games. A balanced attack led the way on Monday.

Aiden Garnett scored 13 points for Edison. Spencer Serven had 12 points to go with three steals, and Kaden Headington added 10 points.

Phillips added several big dunks following a runner-up finish in the Slam Dunk contest at the Rancho Mirage Holiday Invitational on Dec. 28.

“I was happy with our offense,” Edison coach Rich Boyce said. “We moved the ball a lot better. That always makes you look good. When you can’t make shots, it makes your offense look terrible. We made shots today and I thought our defense was good for the most part. We had some lapses. It was a good all-around game for us.”

Jake Enrico led Dos Pueblos (12-4) with 13 points and seven rebounds. Jaron Rillie scored 12 points, all from three-point range.

After routing the No. 10-ranked team in the CIF Southern Section Division 2A poll, Edison returns to Sunset League play on Wednesday. Edison hosts Fountain Valley at 7 p.m.

Edison is alone in first place in league at 3-0, but it knows it won’t be an easy road in the remaining seven league games.

“We are one game up,” said Boyce, whose team leads Newport Harbor and Los Alamitos, who share second place in league at 2-1. “Newport Harbor is so good this year. Los Alamitos is very good, Marina is very good, all the teams are very good. I wouldn’t be surprised at any time, [on] any night, that anybody beats anybody in the Sunset League. We aren’t the favorites, but we are in the driver’s seat at 3-0. I don’t think there [are] any favorites. That is what all the coaches talk about. Every school is very good.”

*

Edison 80, Dos Pueblos 59

Dos Pueblos 10 – 13 – 17 – 19 — 59

Edison 17 – 21 – 23 – 19 — 80

DP – Enrico 13, Rillie 12, Wallace 9, Hodosy 8, Mcceney 7, Zamora 6, Russo 3, Chandrasekaran 1.

3-pt goals – Rillie 4, Enrico 1, Hodosy 1, Russo 1.

Fouled out – Zamora.

Technicals – None.

E – Atencio 21, Garnett 13, Serven 12, Phillips 12, Headington 10, Sale 5, Barrett 3, Strauss 2, Palma 2.

3-pt goals – Headington 2, Atencio 1 Garnett 1, Sale, 1, Barrett 1.

Fouled out – None.

Technicals – None.