Five Takeaways: Rumble for Rosecrans Ave.
Fullerton, Ca — Sunny Hills and Norwalk high schools’ combined to play host to the Rumble for Rosecrans Ave. season kick-off tournament. We were in attendance Wednesday at Sunny Hills high school and were able to see some of North…
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Continue ReadingFullerton, Ca — Sunny Hills and Norwalk high schools’ combined to play host to the Rumble for Rosecrans Ave. season kick-off tournament. We were in attendance Wednesday at Sunny Hills high school and were able to see some of North Orange County’s best squads in addition to a potential Open Division team in Damien.
Wednesday Results:
Anaheim Canyon 86, Irvine University 52
Sonora 79, Santa Fe 64
Damien 83, Esperanza 37
Sunny Hills 54, Yorba Linda 49
Five Takeaways
Not the best evaluation setting, but Damien looks solid despite departures
The Spartans have consistently been among the Top 8-12 teams in SoCal in recent years and this season is no different. Damien’s offense is one of the more explosive units in the area with the three-level scoring ability of junior shooting guard Malik Thomas and 3-point shooting ability of senior wing Austin Cook. What makes the Spartans’ offense even more dangerous this season is the emergence of sophomore wing R.J. Smith as a legitimate 3-point shooting threat. Smith was a starter and major contributor as a freshman, but he was in more of a glue-guy role because of his intangibles. This season, look for Smith to break out in a big way. If Damien isn’t in the eight team Open Division field, look for it to make a run in Division I.
New, old-look Canyon still a top Orange County team
When the Comanches rolled up to fall league events sporting two 7-footers, one who would contribute immediately and another who was making steady progress, heads definitely turned because of the program’s already sterling reputation as a highly competitive and well-coached program. Those two players are no longer on the Canyon roster, but the Comanches still have plenty of firepower with junior point guard Liam Woodrum and senior shooting Jake Martin leading the way. Canyon blew out University Wednesday as Woodrum dropped a game-high 24 points and Martin had 20 points with six 3-pointers.
Sonora struggled at times, but held on for gritty win over Santa Fe
The Raiders were caught off-guard by a solid Santa Fe team who came out of the gates with a free-flowing offense and led by just seven points at halftime. Once Sonora settled in it got back to what it does best by moving the ball, finding open shooters on drive-and-kicks and making the extra pass. Highly-recruited guard Daniel Esparza finished with 15 points, while sophomore wing Marqui Worthy added 14. Six-foot-6 forward Garrett Bell was the surprise of the game and we’ll have more on him in the next takeaway.
Bell proves he can be a go-to guy for Sonora if needed
The sharpshooters for the Raiders weren’t hitting at as high a clip as the team is used to, but the play of Bell made the pain of those missed shots more bearable. Bell scored a game-high 25 points for Sonora as it held off Santa Fe and did so in a variety of ways. The senior connected on three set shots from deep and went 4-for-4 from the free throw line.
Sunny Hills plays with tempo that should allow them to compete in Freeway League
The Freeway League is one of the stronger public school leagues in all of Orange County with La Habra, Sonora, Sunny Hills, Buena Park, Fullerton and Troy battling out in the 10-game slate. Sonora and La Habra are the early favorites, but the Lancers could make things interesting with their style of play. Coach Joe Ok likes his guys to play fast and shoot a lot of 3-pointers. If those shots are going down at a high rate on the right night, we could see an upset down the line.