SUNSET LEAGUE ROUNDUP : Gonzalez Rebounds to Help Huntington Beach Defeat Marina

Offensive adjustments made at the start of the second quarter, and an all-around performance by Tony Gonzalez helped Huntington Beach defeat Marina, 63-43, in a Sunset League boys’ basketball opener Wednesday at Marina High.

“We couldn’t hit anything in the first quarter,” Huntington Beach Coach Roy Miller said. “We switched to the motion offense (to combat Marina’s zone defense) and went to the single post.”

The change helped open up the Oilers’ perimeter shots and a five-point first-quarter lead turned into a 10-point lead, 27-17, at halftime. Tommy Walden scored six points on back-to-back three-point baskets in the second quarter.

Gonzalez, who had foot surgery last summer, scored 21 points and had 14 rebounds for Huntington Beach (11-3, 1-0 in league).

“Gonzalez has played solid all year, but the foot injury is something he’ll have to play with probably for the rest of his career,” Miller said.

Marina (7-6, 0-1), playing without center Eric Endsley, who had the flu, failed to overcome the Oilers’ physical strength.

“We tried, but the kids just got overwhelmed by Huntington Beach’s physical presence,” said Greg Hoffman, who is in his first year of coaching at Marina. “Once we fell behind, the kids pressured and got behind on their shots.

“Endsley is a concern because he may be out all week,” Hoffman said. The Vikings have games against Servite Friday and Santa Ana Saturday.

In other league games:

Edison 56, Servite 46--Micah Kroeger scored a game-high 16 points and Kyle Murphy added 14 for Edison. David Downs had 12 points to pace Servite (4-7, 0-1).

Fountain Valley 59, Santa Ana 57 (2OT)--Ara Petrosian sank a 15-foot baseline jumper with one second left in the second overtime to give Fountain Valley (1-0 in league play) the victory. Petrosian finished with 23 points. Darnel Adamson and Fred Mora each had 12 points for Santa Ana (4-7, 0-1).

Ocean View 76, Westminster 48--Jim Harris’ 18 points paced Ocean View (5-5, 1-0). Sean Goodgame and Kevin Johnson each scored 12 for the Seahawks.