ORANGE LEAGUE BOYS’ BASKETBALL : Valencia Stays Cool After Icing Savanna
After such an important victory, one would have expected the doors of the Valencia locker room to burst open with an excited gaggle of players pouring out.
Quite the contrary. The scene after the Tigers’ 66-59 Orange League boys’ basketball victory over Savanna Wednesday night at Valencia High was the picture of tranquillity.
“They don’t want to get too excited, even after a game like this,” said Valencia Coach Dean Yoshimura. “Their goal from the beginning of the season has been to win this league, so they know this is just a step. They’re keeping an even keel.”
The game, which broke a tie in the league race, wasn’t as balanced as Valencia’s emotions.
Especially for Savanna (9-9, 3-1). The Rebels’ score by quarters: eight points in the first, 21 in the second, seven in the third and 23 in the fourth.
Valencia (10-8, 4-0) was balanced, not scoring fewer than 13 or more than 19 points a quarter, just enough to keep the Tigers a step or two out of the Rebels’ reach.
But what eventually did in Savanna was Valencia’s cool-headed shooting at the free throw line.
“We didn’t fold,” Yoshimura said.
” . . . and they made their free throws,” Savanna’s Paul Waldrop interjected.
The Tigers made 30 of 37 free throws, including Max Zamora’s 10 of 10 and Erik Jackley’s nine of 12.
“Great free throws,” Waldrop repeated as he left the gym.
Valencia led by as many as 13 points early in the second quarter, but Savanna went on a 12-5 spurt to pull to 34-29 at the half.
Having difficulty adjusting to a defense that switched from zone to man-to-man indiscriminately, the Rebels slipped again in the third and found themselves trailing, 47-36, going into the fourth.
A three-point play by Dan Avila, followed by a three-point basket by Jermaine Moore with 2:12 left pulled Savanna to within 55-52, but the Rebels kept fouling Valencia and the Tigers rarely missed.
Jackley and Phil Franklin scored 15 points each and Zamora added 13 for Valencia. Moore scored a game-high 18 points, including four three-pointers, and Avila contributed 17 for Savanna.
In other Orange League games:
Magnolia 45, Brea-Olinda 37--Brandon Hearvey scored 18 points and Frank Henderson added 16 for host Magnolia (13-6, 3-1). Magnolia led, 21-14, at the half and extended the lead to 34-19 going into the fourth quarter.
Matt Bodiford scored 11 points for Brea-Olinda (5-15, 1-3).
Western 78, Anaheim 50--Richard Mackey scored 28 points and Neil Hensley added 14 for host Western (10-9, 1-3). Chanta Iemsisanith led Anaheim (4-14, 0-4) with 14 points.