San Marcos pulled away in the third quarter and beat Nordhoff 64-45 in the opening game of Carpinteria’s Jim Bashore Classic on Monday.
The Royals won despite their worst shooting performance of the season, said coach Dave Odell.
“We didn’t shoot well today but we found a way to get it done,” he said. “I think we were trying a bit too hard today and left ourselves being a bit frantic on both offense and defense. We are still trying to find our rhythm after the 15-day break. We were a little better today compared to Saturday (in loss to Pacifica) but we are a long way from where we were.”
San Marcos outscored Nordhoff 17-9 in the third quarter to open up an 18-point lead.
Elijah Johnson and Bryce Ridenour each scored 15 points to lead the Royals. Ridenour also added 8 rebounds, 4 assists and 5 steals. Tyson Miller and Wesley Ghan-Gibson scored 10 points apiece, putting for Royals in double figures. Christian Widmer led with 5 assists.
Nordhoff was led in scoring by Luke Williams with 15 points.
The Royals play Hueneme on Tuesday.
BISHOP DIEGO 48, RIO MESA 35
The Cardinals picked up their defensive intensity in the second half and broke open a close game.
Bishop was leading 20-18 at halftime and outscored Rio Mesa 17-8 in the third quarter.
“We felt we weren’t pressuring very well,” Bishop coach Dean Prophet said of the first half. “In the second half, we picked up the pressure and outscored them 17-8. The kids definitely picked up the pressure.”
Will Busch scored 14 points and Thomas Lash added nine points to lead the Cardinals (4-2).
Prophet also cited the play of AV Bennett. “He came off the bench and sparked us with his aggressive play. It was contagious.”
Bishop plays Laguna Blanca on Tuesday at 4:30 p.m.
CARPINTERIA 64, LAGUNA BLANCA 52
Bryson Frazer scored a season-high 22 points and Omar Miranda tossed in 14, and the Warriors pulled away to the pool-play game.
Laguna Blanca led 18-16 after the first quarter, but Carpinteria took over the game in the second quarter and outscored the Owls 19-9. The Warriors kept up the defensive intensity in the third period, holding the visitors to seven points.
Frazer and Miranda combined to go 10-for-10 at the free-throw line to seal the win in the fourth quarter. Frazer had five assists and five rebounds, while Miranda grabbed five rebounds and had three assists.
Coach Johnny Ward praised the play of Mason Picerni off the bench.
Spenser Wyatt hit five 3-pointers and scored 17 points to lead Laguna Blanca.
