Marina Rallies Twice to Beat Esperanza in OT
The lead changed 16 times during a Sunset League matchup between Marina and Esperanza Wednesday night at Esperanza, but the Vikings had the upper hand when it counted.
Marina’s Dustin Kaatz dribbled into the right corner and passed to Beau Brown under the basket, resulting in a layup at the buzzer and a 63-61 overtime victory for the Vikings.
Esperanza (10-10, 2-2 in league) held a 52-43 lead with 1:23 left in regulation and led, 61-56, with less than a minute to play in overtime, but sharp three-point shooting by Marina (18-2, 4-0) helped erase both deficits.
Brown and Shane Leis hit three-pointers on consecutive possessions to pull Marina to within 53-50 with 32 seconds left in the fourth quarter, and then Kaatz made a three-pointer from the same right corner with six seconds left to send it to overtime.
In overtime, Leis made two of three free throws after getting fouled on a three-point attempt. He missed the third, but Marina got the rebound and Brown made a three-pointer to tie the score at 61-61 with 39 seconds left.
“Esperanza’s defense had us way out of sync most of the game,” Marina Coach Roger Holmes said. “Then, all of a sudden, our guys started making them.”
Esperanza was 0-5 from the free throw line in the final 1:40 of overtime and 1-4 from the foul line in the final 1:14 of regulation.
“Every league game is going to be tough like this,” said Kaatz, who led all scorers with 26 points despite playing on a tender ankle he sprained Monday in practice.
The comeback victory was a relief for Holmes, who must get his team ready for a showdown with Los Alamitos Friday night.
“If we lose this one, then Friday is an absolute must win,” he said. “Now whoever loses that game still has a shot.”
In other league games:
No. 5 Los Alamitos 66, Huntington Beach 52--Ronnie Prettyman scored 24 points for host Los Alamitos (16-3, 4-0), which was tied at halftime but outscored Huntington Beach, 35-21, in the second half.
Fountain Valley 59, Edison 52--Tucker Fendon scored 19 points to lead visiting Fountain Valley (12-8, 1-4). Christian Prelle led Edison (7-11, 0-4), with 12 points.