Big brother marched up the hill and tangled with little brother, then came back down with a decisive win.
The visiting Carpinteria boys basketball team crushed Cate 64-36 in a clash of schools that are within spitting distance of one another.
The Warriors (1-0) were up 35-11 at halftime and cruised from there despite a no-quit effort from the Rams (1-2).
Manny Rodriguez, a 6-foot-3 junior, scored a game-high 16 points for the Warriors and pulled down 11 rebounds despite seeing limited minutes. Isacc Cervantes chipped in 10 points, and Carpinteria shot 14-for-16 from the charity stripe. Nine Warriors got in the scoring column on the night.
Randy Person led Cate with 10 points.
“As usual, Carp came out hard and tough,” said Rams coach Bryan Rodriguez. “In a lot of ways I thought we matched up with them skill-wise, but it took our guys some time to wake up from what could be called being afraid.”
With some hefty football players on the floor for Carpinteria, the game was physical, with plenty of players hitting the deck more than once. The Warriors were a bit ancy after having waited this long into the season to play their first game.
“You could tell our kids had been waiting,” said coach John Ward. “It got a little sloppy, but generally I was happy with how they played. It was a physical challenge for us, and you’ve got to give Cate credit for not backing down physically.”
The Fillmore Tournament, which begins Thursday, is up next for the Warriors.
(photos by Blake Dorfman/PresidioPics)
CARPINTERIA 64, CATE 36
Carpinteria…17 18 11 18 — 64
Cate…………..3 8 14 11 — 36
CARP—Saito 5, Price 1, Kono 2, Lusterio 9, Cervantes 10, Madden 5, Chavez 4, Rodriguez 16, Bustillos 2. Totals 24 14-16 64.
3-point goals—CARP 3 (Lusterio 1, Cervantes 1, Madden 1), CATE 3.
Total Fouls—CARP 13, CATE 14.
Team Records—CARP 1-0. CATE 1-2.
GO CARP!