SEA VIEW LEAGUE ROUNDUP : No. 4 Irvine Gives Tustin a Victory

Irvine Coach Steve Keith watched, anguished and, finally, accepted Wednesday’s rapid turn of events.

The Vaqueros had things pretty much their own way, only to watch Tustin steal a 36-35 victory. The victory in the Sea View League opener extended the Tillers’ home winning streak to 22 games.

“You have to do the simple things to win,” Keith said.

Irvine didn’t.

What happened came too fast for Keith to control, try as he might. One second, the Vaqueros had the ball and the game. The next, Rod Scheuerman was calmly sinking two free throws to give the Tillers the victory.

Irvine (10-3, 0-1), ranked fourth in Orange County, appeared to have endured a fourth-quarter rally. After Scheuerman missed a three-point attempt, the Vaqueros had the ball out of bounds with a one-point lead and six seconds left.

“At that point, it was going to take a miracle,” Tustin Coach Andy Ground said.

Jim French provided it, as his long inbound pass sailed out of bounds, giving Tustin (10-3, 1-0) a second, then third chance.

First, Dejuan Matthews drove from the top of the key, only to have Greg Wakeman swat the ball out of bounds with two seconds left. The Tillers next went to Scheuerman, who was fouled by Wakeman.

“Irvine is not a team that beats itself,” Ground said. “They made one mistake and we capitalized.”

Actually, the Vaqueros’ game was not that polished. After all, a week ago they manhandled Tustin, 63-49, in the final of the Coast Christmas Classic.

But they appeared to have enough to make it two in a row over the Tillers.

Irvine’s size advantage was too much for Tustin to handle, for a while. Eric Ambrozich, a 6-foot-7 center, and the 6-5 Wakeman strong-armed the Tillers, who do not have a player taller than 6-3.

Ambrozich had 10 points and Wakeman five at halftime, as the Vaqueros led, 21-17. They extended that lead to seven points in the third quarter.

Tustin then switched from its usual man-to-man defense to a variety of zones, with good success.

Ambrozich, who finished with 14 points, did not get a shot attempt in the fourth quarter. Irvine scored only four points in the fourth quarter.

Doug Gottlieb, who scored 14 points, and Scheuerman, who added 11, helped rally the Tillers.

In other league games:

Newport Harbor 64, Saddleback 51--Eric Vallely had 26 points and 14 rebounds for the host Sailors (8-5, 1-0).

Woodbridge 52, Corona del Mar 50--Woodbridge (7-4, 1-0) made eight of 11 free throws down the stretch to hold off Corona del Mar (7-5, 0-1). Rob Whitfield scored 11 points for Woodbridge.

Santa Margarita 75, University 61--Adam Dzierzynski had 18 points to lead Santa Margarita (10-2, 1-0). Demi Ziegler had 22 points for University (3-8, 0-1).