Mesa falls at Orange, 57-42

Richard Dunn

Before the main event, Costa Mesa High’s junior varsity boys

basketball team won an overtime thriller, 50-47, against host Orange,

followed by elaborate pregame festivities, which included the Pledge

of Allegiance, a color guard and the Star-Spangled Banner performed

by an Orange student on her way to becoming the next Whitney Houston.

Unfortunately for Mesa Coach Bob Serven’s varsity squad, there

wasn’t much of a song and dance on the court for the Mustangs as the

Panthers chalked up a 57-42 Golden West League victory Friday night.

Costa Mesa (5-11, 0-2 in league), which scored 11 unanswered

points to end the game and cut into a 26-point deficit, struggled

with its shooting and not once had the lead. The Mustangs finished 16

of 65 from the floor.

Orange’s 6-foot-6 senior swingman Patrick Sanders dominated the

boards with 24 rebounds (18 defensive), including 11 in the opening quarter when the Panthers built a 13-6 lead, before senior Ziad Pepic

drained a buzzer-beating three-pointer for Costa Mesa.

Freshman Scott Knox (scoring on a putback), Pepic (a

three-pointer), Jeff Waldron (on a backdoor pass from Brian Molina),

Pepic again (on a backdoor pass from Danny Krikorian) and Waldron (on

a putback) scored for Costa Mesa in the second quarter. The Mustangs

trailed by five until the final minute of the first half, when backup

Orange guard Marcus Ballestero canned a three-pointer and scored on a

runner with 0:28 left, providing the hosts with their double-digit

intermission lead.

Knox scored a team-high 13 points for Mesa, following efforts this

week of 19 against Ocean View and 18 against Calvary Chapel. Waldron

added 15 rebounds, while Knox grabbed six.

Molina, a freshman, produced three steals in the third quarter and

sparked Mesa with a layup to start the second half, but the Mustangs

had no answer for Orange’s ensuing 12-5 run.

“We score the first basket of the second half and then we can’t

stop their run,” said Serven, whose team shot 3 of 17 from the field

in each of the first and third quarters.

Orange exploded early in the fourth quarter with three straight

baskets, including putbacks by Collins and Sanders, who was being

scouted by UC Irvine coaches.