Sea Kings sizzle from the perimeter

Richard Dunn

Depending on your perspective, the orange circular iron attached

to the backboard can either expand or shrink during the course of a

game.

“It’s like golf,” Corona del Mar High boys basketball coach Ryan

Curry said. “If you’re missing putts, then the hole on the greens

gets smaller and smaller.”

In the Sea Kings’ Pacific Coast League battle with host Calvary

Chapel Friday night, the basket seemed to get bigger and bigger for

Corona del Mar, while at times for the Eagles it could have just as

well been swinging back and forth on a pendulum.

“(The Eagles) didn’t shoot very well at the start of the game (0

of 14 in the first quarter), and when you do that, the rim keeps

getting smaller and smaller,” Curry said, following his team’s 65-44

PCL win, which provided about as much energy from beyond the

three-point line as the Calvary Chapel band with four electric

guitars.

CdM drained a season-high 15 three-pointers, while shooting a

sizzling 71.4% from that distance, missing only six times.

The game’s sidebar was CdM senior Kevin Mancillas, who didn’t

start for the first time this season, but came off the bench to spark

the Sea Kings (9-11, 2-2 in the PCL) with a season-high 23 points.

Mancillas was 7 of 9 from three-point territory, tying a career-high

figure, which he accomplished twice last year in separate games

against Laguna Beach.

“I talked to Kevin about not starting and, of course, he wasn’t

thrilled, but if you don’t like something, you do something about it

and he sure did tonight,” said Curry, whose team’s previous

three-point high in a game this season was nine.

For the Sea Kings, who defeated Calvary Chapel earlier this

season, 72-68, in the La Quinta Tournament, the hoop indeed grew as

the game went on -- they netted two three-pointers in the first

quarter, three in the second, four in the third and six in the

fourth.

In addition to Mancillas, CdM’s Brett Matsen (14 points) finished

4 of 5 from three-point land, while point guard Jay Northridge was 2

of 2, Reid Watanabe 1 of 1 and Pancho Seaborn 1 of 4.

The Sea Kings started slowly, turning the ball over five times in

the opening 3:35 and going scoreless for most of the way, until Bart

Welch -- the team’s offensive rebounding machine -- broke the ice

with a putback, followed by Seaborn’s three-pointer with 1:49 on the

clock. Welch ended with nine rebounds (six offensive), while

Mancillas added six rebounds, two assists and two steals. Seaborn had

13 points.

Despite Calvary Chapel coming up empty on every field-goal attempt

in the first quarter, the Sea Kings only led, 8-5, at quarter’s end.

But Corona del Mar outscored the hosts, 19-12, for a 10-point

halftime lead, pulling away after Calvary Chapel (7-13, 1-3) came

within 19-16. Matsen hit a three with 1:23 left in the first half to

trigger an 8-1 scoring run to conclude the opening 16 minutes. Matsen

added another three with 0:43 remaining, then as the Eagles were

working the clock down for the final shot, Matsen made a steal and

subsequent long dish to Adam Freede, who scored on a layup to

complete the fast break with 0:01 left.

CdM enjoyed a second-half opening 10-2 spurt, highlighted by two

Mancillas three-pointers, the last coming with 4:50 to play in the

third quarter from the baseline on an assist by Northridge to give

the visitors a 37-19 edge.

“We had a big-time opening in the third quarter,” Curry said. “All

of the sudden, it was an 18-point game, then the basket gets as big

as the ocean, then you’re really in business.”

When Mancillas nailed another three with 2:17 left in the third

quarter, it gave the Sea Kings a 43-22 advantage. It was his third

three-pointer of the quarter and fourth in the game -- but Mancillas

was merely warming up.

It was bombs away in the fourth quarter as CdM connected on five

straight three-pointers, three by Mancillas, to build a 60-35 lead

with 3:12 still to play.

Joey Jones led Calvary Chapel with 20 points.