Torrey Pines wins first Open Division Championship
For Torrey Pines, the Open Division championship game has been a house of horrors. In 2015, the Falcons lost St. Augustine on a miracle four-point play. Two years later, they squandered a 10-point fourth quarter lead to the Saints. On…
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Continue ReadingFor Torrey Pines, the Open Division championship game has been a house of horrors.
In 2015, the Falcons lost St. Augustine on a miracle four-point play. Two years later, they squandered a 10-point fourth quarter lead to the Saints.
On Saturday, the Falcons exorcised those championship game demons, outlasting Foothills Christian 51-47 in a physical and sloppy final, the Falcons first Open Division title.
Michael Pope scored a team-high 16 points for Torrey PinesNeither team had their best games (the teams combined to go 4-30 from three and 36 turnovers), but the Falcons closed out the game with free throws from seniors Ryan Brown and Bryce Pope.
The Falcons got huge fourth-quarter threes from a bloodied Noah Viera, who exited the game after catching an inadvertent elbow from a Foothills player.
The 6-7 senior hit consecutive threes in the fourth quarter to help Torrey Pines build a 48-41 lead in the fourth. He finished with 15 points, one of three Falcons in double figures.
But Knights star foward Derrick Carter-Hollinger scored six consecutive points to bring the Knights within one point in the game’s final seconds.
Carter-Hollinger, who scored a game-high 19 points, missed a game-tying free throw, and the Falcons closed the game out hitting 3-4 from the line.
Torrey Pines senior standouts, Michael and Bryce Pope, added 16 and 11 points, respectively. Bryce Pope also grabbed 11 rebounds for the double double.
Foothills Christian’s usually reliable back court of Yassine Gharram and Jaren Nafarette struggled shooting in the finals. They shot a combined 6-24 from the field. Gharram finished with 13 points and a game-high 6 steals.