SUNSET LEAGUE ROUNDUP : Marina Stages Second-Half Rally to Win
The effects of its upset loss to Fountain Valley two nights earlier still seemed to have a hold of the Marina boys’ team Friday. The Vikings had to mount a second-half comeback to defeat Huntington Beach, 54-48, in a Sunset League game at Marina.
The Oilers (11-10, 4-4 in league) led by as many as 11 points in the second quarter, before Marina (15-7, 7-1) went ahead to stay late in the third quarter. The victory keeps Marina in first place in the league by two games over Edison.
After a three-point basket by Viking guard Matt Keim to open the game, Huntington Beach scored 11 consecutive points, including four each by forwards Jeff Vanderwal and Tony Gonzalez. Vanderwal finished with a game-high 17 points and Gonzalez had 16 points and led all rebounders with 15.
Marina, in fact, didn’t hit another basket until B.J. Babic made a 15-foot jumper with 1 minute 25 seconds remaining in the first quarter.
The Vikings, ranked eighth in the county, cut the lead to 24-19 at halftime by scoring the last six points of the second quarter.
“We just didn’t execute very well,” Marina Coach Steve Popovich said. “I felt very fortunate to be down only five at the half.”
A layup by center Brendan Lyons, who sat out the second quarter after picking up his third foul late in the first quarter, and a three-pointer by Darren Crooks got Marina even, 24-24, with 5:59 left in the third quarter.
Marina got baskets from Crooks and Scott Anderson, and a free throw by Babic to take a 35-31 lead after three quarters and held off the Oilers in the final quarter.
The Vikings turned the game around by shooting 60% (12 of 20) in the second half, while Huntington Beach had trouble finding its range. The Oilers made only nine of 31 field-goal attempts (29%) and converted only one of 10 three-point shots in the same span.
Keim, who made four three-pointers, led Marina with 16 points and Crooks had 15. Anderson came off the bench to score 10 points for the Vikings, eight in the fourth quarter.
In other league games:
Edison 54, Ocean View 51--Brandon Jessie made two free throws with 20 seconds remaining to clinch the victory for Edison (12-7, 5-2). Jessie led the Chargers with 23 points and 11 rebounds. Bryan Knox led Ocean View (12-9, 4-4) with 18 points, including five three-pointers.
Fountain Valley 67, Westminster 45--Chris Rieff had 26 points, including 10 of 11 free throws for host Fountain Valley (10-10, 5-3). Jason Formagus had 15 points for Fountain Valley, and Paul Frechette for Westminster (2-6 in league).