Pioneers fade after fine start
Edgar Melik-Stepanyan
They were doing all right in the first quarter. They routinely broke
a half-hearted press, actually made more shots than they missed, and
held a lead at the end of six minutes of play.
The Providence High girls’ basketball players were riding high in
Wednesday’s first-round game of the 19th annual Bell-Jeff Summer Hoop
Finale.
The Pioneers -- a school with an enrollment of just 564 -- had CV
-- 2,400 students -- frustrated with their ability to get open
three-point looks and easy baskets.
So, what went wrong in Providence’s 50-34 loss at Bell-Jeff High?
Try everything after the first quarter.
Like the second quarter, when the Pioneers (10-4) scored a
whopping one point, missed all seven of their shots, as well as seven
of their eight free throws, and committed seven turnovers.
And the fourth quarter, when Providence scored four points -- none
in the first three minutes -- when the Falcons (28-10) went on an
11-0 run to put the game well out of reach.
That made a strong first quarter all for naught. Providence made
five of its eight first-quarter shots, including both of its
three-point attempts, and held a 14-10 lead.
“They came out and they played their game,” CV Coach Bruce Breeden
said.
“They weren’t intimidated. They played hard and they hit some big
shots to stay in the game.”
Pioneer Coach Andrew Bencze said he was happy his team started
well, “But it [stinks] because it’s a tease,” he said. “That’s the
frustrating part.”
Breeden said the frustrating part of the game for him was watching
officials miss calls and watching his program struggle.
The Falcons -- playing without starting guard Jeanine Deno, who’ll
sit out the rest of the summer with an injury -- made the necessary
adjustments, picked up their intensity on defense and stifled the
Pioneers.
CV made five of 17 shots in the second quarter, eight of 16 in the
third and 21 of 50 overall. It also forced Providence into 23
turnovers, 19 coming in the final three quarters.
“It’s a young team,” Bencze said. “We broke their press and got
opportunities, and couldn’t get it in.
“Crescenta Valley is a lot more experienced. We just missed a lot
of opportunities.”
Falcon senior center Lindsay Myers didn’t miss a lot of her
opportunities, scoring a game-high 25 points to go with four steals.
Myers matched the Pioneers’ rebound total with 15, including 14 in
the final three quarters.
Teammate Lindsey Chessum had eight points, six rebounds and five
assists. Megan Campbell led Providence with seven points and four
rebounds.
*--*
BOX SCORE
*--*
*--*
Providence 14 1 15 4 -- 34
Cres. Valley 10 12 16 12 -- 50
*--*
*--*
PROVIDENCE
Campbell 6, Bouldoukian 6, Geralo 5, Hansen 5, Amran 5, J. Estreller 5, Reter 1. * Three-pointers: Bouldoukian 2, J. Estreller, Geralo
CRESCENTA VALLEY
Myers 25 points, 15 rebounds and 4 steals, Chessum 8, Gibbert 8, Forster 2, Da Silva 2, Duncan 2, Becker 2, Chramosta 1. * Three-pointers: Chessum 2
*--*