Marina’s Brown Goes Outside to Sink Buena Park
Dare to leave him open and focus on someone else. Or go ahead, put a couple of flailing arms in his face. Either way, Marina shooting guard Beau Brown gets his looks--and more than his share of three-pointers.
Brown converted four of his five three-point attempts in the third quarter Wednesday night and finished with 19 points to propel the eighth-ranked Vikings past host Buena Park, 59-48, in a nonleague boys’ basketball game.
The Coyotes (7-4) initially focused on shutting down Marina forward Dustin Kaatz (13 points), but when Brown got the hot hand in the decisive third quarter, Buena Park Coach Ed Matillo instructed his troops to shut him down. It was too late.
Brown’s third three-pointer of the quarter gave the Vikings (10-2) an 18-point lead. And even with defenders following him step for step after that, Brown managed to get open for another three late in the quarter.
“When he’s open, that’s a good shot for us,” Marina Coach Roger Holmes said. “He can string them together consistently. And when he hits a couple and guys come outside on him, that opens up the inside.
“But it’s hard to cover him because our guys will find him.”
It wasn’t even Brown’s best three-point performance of the season. He already had converted six three-pointers in a game twice.
Brown said it has taken him awhile to regain his touch since joining the team in November following the football season, during which he was the starting quarterback.
“The last four games he’s struggled on the three,” Holmes said. “So it’s great to see him shooting like that again.”
Buena Park, which trailed by only three at halftime, managed a run after Brown put Marina up by 18 midway through the third quarter.
Buena Park’s guards made a couple of three-pointers early in the fourth quarter, and then center Chris Ingram (eight points, nine rebounds) nailed a short jumper to pull the Coyotes to within 52-46 with 2:47 to play.
But the Vikings hit five of seven free throws down the stretch to seal the victory.
“I think we played them tough and hung with them,” Buena Park Coach Ed Matillo said. “But with Brown and Kaatz both scoring like that, they’re going to be a good team.”
Coyote guard DeAndre Gipson scored all 13 of his points in the second half after sitting out much of the first half in foul trouble. Forward Matt Rodriguez added 12 points for Buena Park.
Justin Maranto scored 10 for Marina.
In other nonleague games:
Aliso Niguel 77, Estancia 69--Ryan Ross scored 32 points, including 21 in the second half when Aliso Niguel (7-4) outscored visiting Estancia, 51-37. Brandon Sievers scored 23 points for the Wolverines and was 11 for 11 from the free-throw line.
El Dorado 57, Faith Hill Academy (Philippines) 40--Quinn Hawking had 17 points and Evan Bowl had 14 points and 15 rebounds to lead the host Golden Hawks (10-1). Bowl scored seven of his points during El Dorado’s 17-5 third quarter run.
Servite 67, Sonora 66--A Sonora player grabbed a defensive rebound with three seconds left, but stepped out of bounds, giving the ball to Servite. Billy Burfeind then took the in-bounds pass under the basket and scored as time expired for the Friars.
In the City of Palms tournament:
Northwest Christian (Fla.) 72, No. 1 Mater Dei 56--The Monarch trailed at halftime 29-23 and were outscored, 28-17, in third quarter of a semifinal game. Northwest Christian, a small school from Dade County in Miami, connected on 10 of 20 three-point shots to pull off the upset.
Mater Dei (10-1) had no answer to the guard duo of Jose Caraballo (21 points) and Eddie Starks (20 points). Jamal Sampson led the Monarchs with 18 points and six rebounds.
In the Mojave (Ariz.) tournament:
El Toro 65, Magnolia 54--Ashkan Nazeri had 18 points and Matt Green had 11 points and nine rebound to help El Toro (10-4) win in the final. Nazeri and Christopher Parish were all-tournament selections for the Chargers, who won in the consolation final last year.
Geoffrey Clayton scored 16 points for Magnolia (12-2) and was named tournament MVP.
Mission Viejo 67, Escondido San Pasqual 62--Francis Ireifej had 20 points and eight assists and had nine points in the fourth quarter to help the Diablos (8-7) hold off a San Pasqual rally in the consolation final. Travis Niesen scored 22 points for Mission Viejo.
Irvine 49, Mountain View (Ariz.) 47--Adam Roggero scored the winning layup for Irvine (5-9) on an inbounds pass from Chad Hazlett in a consolation game. Roggero had tied the game with ten seconds remaining when he hit two free throws.
In the Lahainaluna (Hawaii) tournament:
Fullerton 50, University 39--Akachi Azubuike scored 15 points and Michael Bridgford and Geo Villalba each scored 14 for Fullerton (9-2), which plays Pacifica today for fifth place.
