Too little too late for CdM

Bryce Alderton

Try as hard as they might, the Corona del Mar High boys basketball

team was unable to reach the summit in their comeback bid in the

opening round of the 18th annual Estancia Coast Classic Thursday

morning.

Corona del Mar’s 5-for-11 shooting outburst in the fourth quarter

that included two of Kevin Mancillas’ four three-point baskets for

the game was not enough as Anaheim (2-10) dealt the Sea Kings a 43-41

opening-round loss at Estancia High.

CdM (3-7) never led but had two chances to tie the score with a

deuce in the final three minutes, including an inbounds play with 9.8

seconds to go and the Sea Kings passing it in on their half of the

court.

Trailing 41-39, Sea King senior Pancho Seaborn threw the ball into

Jay Northridge who was standing near the top of the three-point line,

and raced toward the hoop for the give-and-go attempt. Northridge

made the pass, but Anaheim’s Tyron Jones reached in with his left

hand to strip the ball.

Players from both teams scrambled for the loose ball on the floor,

resulting in a jump ball and possession to the Colonists. The Sea

Kings fouled immediately and German MacBenttez hit both free throws

to seal the game.

“I told them to take the best shot they could get,” said CdM Coach

Ryan Curry about the aforementioned inbounds play. “I said that if

(Anaheim) plays man-to-man defense to run the passing game and get

the ball in. They didn’t guard the inbounds player so he went to the

basket like he was supposed to and they stripped the ball from him.

We just expended too much energy trying to catch up. I don’t think we

were ready to play today.”

The Sea Kings didn’t hit their first basket -- an Adam Freede

layup off a Northridge assist -- until 1:31 remained in the first

quarter to cut the Colonists lead to 10-2.

Four of the Sea Kings’ six first-half field goals came from

three-point range, where CdM finished 8 for 26.

“We did a better job in the second half of getting two-point

baskets but we didn’t get any baskets in the low post and we relied

on our perimeter game to win or lose the game,” Curry said. “We dug

ourselves a huge hole early.”

Seven of Anaheim’s nine first-half field goals were layups as the

Colonists fought off a Corona charge to start the second quarter.

Leading 12-5, the Sea Kings got consecutive threes from Mancillas and

Northridge to cut the lead to 12-11 with 5:38 remaining in the second

period before Anaheim scored the next five points off of two layups

and a free throw to go up, 17-11, and the Colonists led, 22-16 at

halftime.

Mancillas, who led the Sea Kings with 19 points on 6-of-17

shooting, took a pass from a driving Brandon Sherick-Odom to hit a

three from the corner to get the Sea Kings within one with 5:29 left

in the game before Anaheim’s leading scorer, Luis Barrera, answered

on the ensuing possession with a trey of his own to increase the

Colonists’ lead to 36-32.

“I didn’t like us defensively at all,” Curry said. “We gambled too

much.”

CdM plays Rancho Alaimitos today at 9 a.m.