Artesia Gets Early Jump on Savanna

Before his team met defending state champion Artesia, Savanna Coach Craig Snider said his strategy was to “fight a good fight.”

Unfortunately for Snider, the fight went out of his Rebels and the intimidation factor went in during the second quarter, in which they were outscored by the Pioneers, 14-2.

The second-quarter domination helped top-seeded Artesia defeat Savanna, 69-44, in a Division II-A game Friday at Artesia High.

Savanna ends its season with a 10-16 record. Artesia (22-3) will next play North Torrance (15-10), a 79-53 winner over Bishop Amat.

“That second quarter really hurt,” Snider said. “We turned the ball over too many times and just underestimated how much ground (Artesia’s) Charles O’Bannon could cover.”

“We didn’t play smart (in the second quarter),” said Canhhuy Nguyen, who led Savanna with 17 points. “We became intimidated, and were just outmanned.”

From the final 44 seconds of the first quarter to the final six minutes, 14 seconds of the second quarter, Artesia scored 11 unanswered points--six of them by O’Bannon, who finished with 22 points and two three-pointers.

“Savanna’s quick turnovers in the second quarter got our momentum going,” Artesia coach Wayne Marino said. “It helped us pick up the intensity that enabled us to get after them better.”

For Savanna, Jermaine Moore scored 15 points and had two three-pointers, and Todd Wilson had eight rebounds and a pair of impressive steals.

Said Marino: “Savanna played hard. They tried to do things that would disrupt us (in the second half), but we were able to adjust.”