SUNSET LEAGUE ROUNDUP : Williams Gets the Nod, Edison Gets Past Oilers
Mike Williams didn’t start for the Edison High School basketball team Friday night, but he got the Chargers’ offense started in the fourth quarter against Huntington Beach.
Williams came off the bench to score six of his 10 points in the final six minutes as Edison rallied for a 47-43 Sunset League victory at Edison.
The victory kept Edison (11-7, 4-2 in league) in the chase for the league title. Edison and Huntington Beach (11-8, 4-2) trail league-leading Marina by two games.
Williams’ six points, all on easy layups, keyed a 14-5 Edison run that broke a 33-33 tie.
“Williams was the difference tonight,” Edison Coach Jon Borchert said. “He played for us as a freshman, but he sat out as a sophomore and junior because he was working. He’s going to see a lot more playing time.”
Williams’ layup gave Edison a 47-38 lead with 2 minutes 38 seconds left. Huntington Beach’s Chris Jones hit a three-pointer, and Tommy Walden added two free throws with 1:19 left to cut it to 47-43.
The Oilers got the ball twice in the final 45 seconds--on an Edison turnover and a missed free-throw attempt by Visal Pok--but they missed five shots down the stretch.
“We have to shoot better to win games like this,” Huntington Beach Coach Roy Miller said. “The pace of the game hurt us. We knew whoever would run off six unanswered points down the stretch would win it.”
Brandon Jessie, playing with a sprained left ankle, led the Chargers with 21 points and nine rebounds. The injury forced Jessie to miss the Chargers’ 77-74 triple overtime loss to Fountain Valley Wednesday night.
If Jessie’s ankle was bothering him, he didn’t let it show early in the game. He hit five of his first six shots, scoring 11 of Edison’s 13 first-quarter points as the Chargers built a five-point lead.
But Huntington Beach shut down Jessie in the second quarter, holding him scoreless on three missed shots.
In other league games:
Ocean View 66, Fountain Valley 56--Justin Carr scored six of his 17 points in the first quarter when the Seahawks outscored the Barons, 15-7.
Jim Harris, returning to action after missing Wednesday’s game because of a sprained ankle, added 16 points for Ocean View (11-8, 3-3).
Chris Rieff led Fountain Valley (8-10, 3-3) with 24 points.
Marina 88, Santa Ana 63--Matt Keim scored 13 of his 17 points in the first quarter and the Vikings (14-6, 6-0) raced to a 28-16 advantage.