Too Many Turnovers End Sylmar’s Turnaround Season

When push came to shove in a semifinal game of the City Section 3-A Division playoffs, the Sylmar High basketball team wasn’t ready to take the next step and share in the limelight that its football team has enjoyed the last decade.

Sylmar dominated the boards but suffered from 25 turnovers and lost to Franklin, 48-38, Friday night in front of a near-capacity crowd of about 1,500 at Cal State Los Angeles.

“I think some of our kids were scared,” Sylmar Coach Bort Escoto said. “[Playoff victories are] not something Sylmar basketball is used to.”

Despite the loss, Escoto was encouraged by the turnaround the Spartans made in one year, winning the Mid-Valley League a season after finishing 5-15.

“We came a long way and had a great year,” he said.

In a game that had 10 lead changes, Sylmar trailed, 37-32, after three quarters, when the Spartans literally threw away their chance to rally by committing seven turnovers. Four of the miscues were balls thrown out of bounds.

Sylmar (16-11) took its final lead, 26-25, when Jeremiah Turner converted on an offensive rebound early in the third quarter, beginning a 6-0 run that extended the margin to 30-25.

Then the Spartans fell apart.

Franklin (19-7), which will face Bell in the final Saturday, responded with a 12-2 run to close the third quarter with a 37-32 lead.

In the fourth quarter, Sylmar closed to within six twice, first on a jumper by Robert Valentine and later on a layup by David Carrillo.

But after closing to within 44-38 with 2:07 remaining, Sylmar threw the ball out of bounds on three consecutive possessions. Sylmar shot 29% in the second half.

“We lost and we played terribly,” Escoto said. “What would we have done if we played halfway decent?”

Sylmar outrebound the Panthers, 29-19, but could not get enough offensive production from its starters. Daron Wilson, the team’s leading scorer with a 17-point average, was shut out, although he had eight rebounds. Wilson, a 6-4 senior forward, missed 10 shots and was twice called for offensive fouls.