Boys’ Basketball Roundup : Irvine Runs Away From Marina for 63-50 Win in Opener

Irvine High School’s basketball team opened its 1985-86 season on Saturday advertised as the best team in the school’s nine-year history, and the Vaqueros lived up to the billing with a 63-50 win over Marina.

Irvine combined quickness, strong physical play under the boards and overall good shooting to score an easy win. Marina played well only in the second quarter and never threatened after Vaquero guard Jimmy Raye stole a pass and made a layup for a 48-35 lead to open the fourth quarter.

“They’re a really good team,” said Steve Popovich, Marina coach. “We got into foul trouble early, and they shot awfully well. We’re nowhere near where we should be at this stage of the season.”

Mark Georgeson, the Vikings’ 6-foot 8-inch center, picked up two quick offensive fouls and never got into the flow of the game. He had eight points at the half but failed to score in the second half.

Steve Guild, the Vikings’ returning all-league forward, was never a factor. He made only 2 of 10 field goal attempts and finished with just 10 points. Junior guard Mike Meyers was the Vikings’ lone bright spot, scoring 20 points before fouling out in the last quarter.

There were plenty of reasons for Irvine Coach Al Herring to be happy. Shawn Patchell and Mike Oden, two strong players inside, dominated the boards. Patchell led the Vaqueros with 18 points and had 10 rebounds. Oden added five points and three rebounds in a reserve role.

“I thought defense and rebounding won the game for us,” Herring said. “We also shot pretty well over their zone. Oden was a big surprise. He hasn’t played much, but if he can contribute like he did tonight, it will be a big plus.”

The Vaqueros figured to start quickly. They have five returning starters, including all-league guard Mike Herring, the coach’s son. Herring had 14 points and most of those came on long, outside jump shots.

Irvine will get a good test on Wednesday night in the Sonora Tournament. The Vaqueros are scheduled to meet Hacienda Heights Wilson and its 6-10 center, Scott Williams. Williams is considered the best player in the state and has signed with the University of North Carolina.

MARINA (50)--Guild 10, Hattabaugh 6, Georgeson 8, Padilla 2, Quinn 4, Meyers 20.

IRVINE (63)--Tamura 10, Littler 6, Patchell 18, Herring 14, Moceri 4, Oden 5, Raye 6.

In the Cerritos-Gahr Tournament:

Valley Christian 60, Kennedy 57--Darrin Queen scored a game-high 27 points for Kennedy, but the Irish fourth-quarter rally fell short as Valley Christian won the consolation championship. Queen also had seven assists and five steals for Kennedy (2-2). Mark Reed led the Royals (3-1) with 18 points.

Valley Christian (60)--Youngran 9, Riestria 12, Bousema 9, Brown 10, Reed 18, Bouma 2.

Kennedy (57)--Davidson 3, Lauderdale 4, Keith 2, Queen 27, Curry 12, Hansell 2, Bernard 3, Harding 4.

In the Orange Lutheran Tournament:

Orange Lutheran 80, Brethren 69-- Mike Krabbe scored 26 and Lymanyeo Scott added 20 as the Lancers won the tournament championship. Orange Lutheran’s Matt Zaun, who scored 37 points in the semifinal game, was named the tournament MVP.

Brethren (69)--Guillory 4, Gideon 3, Grayson 14, Tatum 16, Porter 7, Dillard 16, Sisk 9.

Orange Lutheran (80)--Neben 14, Lofink 6, Busse 2, Zaun 12, Scott 20, Krabbe 26.

Montclair Prep 76, L.A. Lutheran 53--Todd Bowser scored 32 points to lead Montclair Prep to a third-place victory.

Southern California Christian 72, California Lutheran 63--Jeff Bickmore led SCC with 20 points as the Flames won the consolation championship. Andrew Mahnke also had 20 points for Cal Lutheran.

In nonleague action:

Avalon 65, St. Margaret’s 49--Despite a game-high 24 points by Rob Lee, St. Margaret’s of San Juan Capistrano fell to the Lancers at Avalon. The Tartans dropped to 1-2 with the loss.

St. Margaret’s (49)--Lee 24, E. Flather 18, M. Flather 2, Cooper 5, Reisner 0.

Avalon (65)--S. Hernandez 16, Marland 16, Williams 6, Howrylak 7, R. Hernandez 5, Garza 4, Felix 6, Lopez 3, Gonzalez 2.

Canyon CC 63, Bolsa Grande 57--Sophomore Joe Small scored 19 points and grabbed 15 rebounds and Hung Nguyen added 17 points in the Matadors’ loss Canyon of Canyon Country. Bolsa Grande evened its record at 1-1.

Canyon CC (63)--Moloznik 21, Paskwietz 10, Nash 2, Mettinger 25, Sayre 2, Tice 3.

Bolsa Grande (57)--Cao 11, Afdahl 6, Small 19, Nguyen 17, Teschler 4.

Mater Dei 56, Dos Pueblos 33--The Monarchs rolled to their 33rd consecutive win spanning two seasons despite Dos Pueblos’ slow-down tactics. Dos Pueblos took only 12 shots in the second half despite trailing by as many as 10 points.

Mater Dei, now 4-0, was paced by forward Stuart Thomas with 15 points. The Monarchs meet St. Bernard on Friday night at Loyola Marymount University in their next game.

MATER DEI (56)--Mounce 8, Dwyer 2, Peabody 5, Ellis 10, Thomas 15, Rembert 10, Peterson 2, Schmitt 2, Redouty 2.

DOS PUEBLOS (33)--Zamora 2, Hicks 13, King 4, Douglass 2, G. Hesson 2, A. Hesson 1, Payrat 4, Ginrich 2, Goodrow 3.