Having a quick first step is crucial in basketball, and having a quick first half was crucial for Santa Barbara High on Friday as the Dons buried five 3-pointers before the break and held on for a 56-47 win over San Marcos in front of a big, spirited crowd at the SBCC Sports Pavilion.
Roberto Nelson had a quiet 19 points to lead all scorers in Santa Barbara’s balanced offensive effort, which featured five players with six points or more.
“I thought our guys had real good focus and energy in the first half. We shared the ball and had a lot of guys scoring,” said Dons coach Chris Hantgin.
The Royals, on the other hand, relied on 18 from Nick Marquez and a career-high 17 from guard Bryant Koopmans, who buried three high-arcing baseline threes in the game on top of some nice takes to the hoop.San Marcos (11-8, 1-2 Channel League) came into the game with a clear size advantage in the post, but Santa Barbara (6-10, 1-2) grabbed some early offensive rebounds nonetheless and pulled out to an 8-0 lead. The Royals also had some early foul trouble in the post, as big man Josh Guild was called for his third foul in the opening minute of the second quarter.
Coach Jarrod Bradley looked baffled after the whistle, claiming there was no way that Guild had committed three fouls.
“The scorekeeper put up one foul, and then the second foul he got was the third foul, so I had to take him out,” said Bradley. “I think that made a little bit of a difference for them and they got a few more offensive rebounds than I wanted them to. I’m not really sure how that happened.”
Bryson Lloyd took advantage of the situation, shooting 4-for-7 on the night and finishing with eight points, which the football star said with a shrug was “probably” his career-high.
“That’s the most shots I’ve taken since my JV year,” he said. “I was just trying to use my body to get position and get good shots down there.”
Freddy Maldonado hit a three with six minutes left in the first half and Tarrik Khalil followed with one of his own soon after, Nelson then drove and pulled up for a jumper and Lloyd kissed a bank off the glass to give the Dons their biggest lead of the night at 28-11.
Koopmans scored six points in the final four minutes to cut the Dons lead to 13 at 34-21 heading into the locker room.
“I was just hitting open shots. My teammates were getting me the ball and I was converting,” he said.
San Marcos won the fourth quarter 10-8 and clamped down on defense, getting as close as seven points on two occasions in the final minutes. But the Royals never got close enough to put the outcome in serious doubt.
For both teams, the experience of playing in front of rowdy, dueling student sections was a fun experience.
“It’s very fun. I was very nervous at first but then you kind of get used to it,” said Koopmans with a grin.
(Photos taken by John Dvorak & James Sinclair/PresidioPics, email [email protected] to order prints)
Photo Gallery:
Santa Barbara vs. San Marcos, January 23, 2009
SANTA BARBARA 56, SAN MARCOS 47
SANTA BARBARA — Thomas 10, Uribe 6, Khalil 3, Nelson 19, Leonard 2, Maldonado 8, Lloyd 8. Totals 20 10-16 56.
SAN MARCOS — Vines 7, Johnson 1, Marquez 18, Koopmans 17, Mkpado 2, Moore 2. Totals 15 12-18 47.
Santa Barbara….16 18 8 14 — 56
San Marcos……..7 14 10 16 — 47
3-point goals — SB 6 (Maldonado 2, Uribe 2, Nelson, Khalil), SM 5 (Marquez 2, Koopmans 3).
Total fouls — SB 19, SM 13.
Fouled out — None.
Technicals — None.
Team records — SB 6-10, 1-2; SM 11-8, 1-2.
