Ocean View girls’ basketball drops chance to grab share of first

Ocean View High girls’ basketball coach Kim Morris has said in the past that the Golden West League title always seems to come down to three teams — Ocean View, Westminster and Segerstrom.

The Seahawks split their meetings with Segerstrom, and when the Lions beat the Jaguars on Wednesday night, it offered the Seahawks another life in the league title hunt.

Ocean View traveled to Westminster for a critical game, the last to be played between two of the top three teams in the league. Momentum favored the Lions, and the added component of it being Westminster’s senior night added to their emotional high.

Senior guard Jacklynn Tran had a game-high 18 points, and Westminster separated itself from the pack with a 48-36 win over Ocean View on Friday night.

Ocean View (16-8, 5-3 in league) was looking to forge a three-way tie for first place atop the league standings. Instead, it is Westminster (17-7, 7-1) that controls its own destiny. The Lions lead Segerstrom (13-9, 6-2) by one game with two games remaining.

“It wasn’t easy at all,” Tran said of the Lions beating their top league rivals in the same week. “We had to work hard for it. Beating Segerstrom was a step in the right direction, and we knew that tonight was a really big night.

“We just took it into our own hands. We played hard, and we won the game.”

The Seahawks struggled mightily to find any offensive flow against the disruptive Lions. Ocean View committed 13 turnovers in the first half.

Ocean View was met with a full-court press to begin the game. Lions senior point guard Nyla Bivens said it was a game plan set forth to stop an opponent that was similar to her own team.

“They’re like us,” Bivens said. “They move the ball up the court pretty fast. Coach [Holly Armstrong] just told us to press, slow down the ball and go at our pace.”

Ocean View junior center Helen Reynolds (nine rebounds) got into foul trouble immediately. With Reynolds out of the game, the Lions got into the paint and went on a run. The combination of Bivens on the dribble-drive and Kianna Garcia (10 points and 18 rebounds) helped Westminster take a 22-8 lead at the 3:27 mark of the second quarter.

Freshman guard Hosanna Walker paced the Seahawks with 11 points and five steals. Senior guard Erica Almiranez added seven points and five rebounds, and senior guard Emi Yamasaki had six points and three steals.

The Seahawks have played their big games on the road in the second half of league, and that is likely where they will open the CIF Southern Section Division 3AA playoffs.

Just two games remain before the postseason, and at the moment, Ocean View’s coaching staff is looking for answers.

“This is the second game in a row against a big opponent that we’ve had the right plan, and our kids’ heads are spinning,” Morris said. “They’re not equipped to come out and execute what we’re asking them to do at this particular point, and I don’t really have an answer as to why.

“It’s not a question of desire, or effort, or hard work, or commitment, loyalty, any of those things. Our kids have that stuff in spades, but somehow in the midst of this, we take a step back. It’s frustrating.”

*

Westminster 48, Ocean View 36

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Ocean View 8 – 3 – 12 – 13 — 36

Westminster 9 – 16 – 11 – 12 — 48

OV – Walker 11, Almiranez 7, Yamasaki 6, Solis 5, Reynolds 4, Torres 3.

3-pt. goals – Yamasaki 6, Almiranez 1, Solis 1.

Fouled out – None.

Technicals – None.

W – J. Tran 18, Garcia 10, C. Tran 6, N. Bivens 6, S. Bivens 3, Ton 3, Medina 2.

3-pt. goals – J. Tran 2, S. Bivens 1, C. Tran 1, Ton 1.

Fouled out – None.

Technicals – None.

andrew.turner@latimes.com

Twitter: @ProfessorTurner