SUNSET LEAGUE ROUNDUP : Huntington Beach Wins League Opener

The Huntington Beach High School boys’ basketball team made 11 of its first 13 shots and breezed to a 69-57 victory over Ocean View in the Sunset League opener for both schools Wednesday night at Huntington Beach High.

The Oilers (8-6, 1-0) took a 26-10 lead early in the second quarter when center Jeff Vanderwal scored on a follow shot. Ocean View was forced to scramble the remainder of the game.

Ocean View (8-6, 0-1) got as close as eight points, 47-39, early in the fourth quarter after guard Bryan Knox made his fourth consecutive three-point shot. But Ocean View was forced to foul down the stretch and Huntington Beach responded by making 10 free throws in the final quarter.

Afterward, Ocean View Coach Jim Harris wondered if his team was still recovering from nearly upsetting the county’s top-ranked team, Mater Dei, last Saturday night.

“We weren’t ready, and I don’t know if we left our game back at home Saturday night against Mater Dei,” Harris said. “They played real well and we looked like we weren’t even on the court at times.”

Huntington Beach had lost to Ocean View, 63-51, in a consolation game of the Tournament of Champions four weeks ago.

Wednesday night, guards Tommy Walden and Chris Jones rarely missed in the first half, combining for 23 points as Huntington Beach opened a 33-19 lead. Walden finished with 19 points.

“I thought we built confidence early and then negated their perimeter game with good defense,” Huntington Beach Coach Roy Miller said. “Walden was unstoppable, but then I haven’t seen too many teams who could defend him straight up.”

Ocean View managed to keep the final score respectable by hitting eight three-point shots in the second half. Guard Jimmy Harris led Ocean View with 32 points, making 10 of 22 shots. Knox added 14 points, 12 on three-pointers.

Friday night, the Seahawks play host to league favorite Edison, and Harris was leery of an 0-2 start in the seven-team league.

“I talked about the importance of beating Huntington Beach for a week, but it sure didn’t look as if anyone took me very seriously,” Harris said. “We’ve got to come back and beat Edison in our gym if we are serious about winning the league title.”