Mesa turns over game

Patrick Laverty

That Costa Mesa High’s boys basketball team even had a chance to get

back into the game after committing more turnovers than it had points

in the first half was remarkable in itself.

More remarkable is that the Mustangs actually did turn things

around after halftime, coming back from a 12-point deficit late in

the second quarter to tie the game in the final period.

But Mesa simply ran out of gas.

After tying the score in the opening moments of the fourth quarter

and then once again pulling even on a pair of Jeff Waldron free

throws with 6:03 remaining in the game, Cypress outscored the

Mustangs 12-2 to pull off a 49-39 first-round victory at the Anaheim

Convention Center tournament Wednesday.

“We just couldn’t get ahead,” Costa Mesa Coach Bob Serven said.

“We played a poor first half. A little bit of that is we have

sophomores playing against seniors. We showed some maturity coming

back and we kept our composure after all the turnovers in the first

half, but we just couldn’t finish.”

The Mustangs (4-2) committed 18 turnovers, nine each in the first

and second quarters, before halftime and fell behind by as many as 12

points. They went into the break trailing Cypress, 26-16.

Mesa was bale to close the gap by forcing seven turnovers by the

Centurions (6-1) in the third quarter, while committing just three of

their own. Waldron, who led the Mustangs with 19 points and 10 rebounds, scored five points over the final 58 seconds of the quarter

to pull Mesa within three, 33-30.

Marko Stankovic eliminated that lead completely with a traditional

three-point play 45 seconds into the final quarter. After a

four-point run by Cypress, Mesa scored four consecutive points, tying

the score, 37-37.

The last of those points came on Waldron’s free throws after

Centurions Coach Jeff Russell was called for the technical foul. The

Mustangs got the ball back with a chance to take their first lead of

the game, but couldn’t convert. Mesa scored just two points the rest

of the way, a putback bucket by Waldron with 3:25 remaining.

“We were outscored 12-2 to end the game and that’s a compliment to

[Cypress],” Serven said.

Some of that can be attributed to Mesa’s youth. Stankovic is the

only senior that played against Cypress and three sophomores start in

the backcourt, which had trouble in the first half against the

Centurion’s full-court, man-to-man pressure.

“I think we were a little awestruck, playing in a big-time

facility like this,” Serven said. “That’s why we [scheduled this

tournament], to come here and play against good teams.”

The Mustangs will have a chance to do that again today in the

consolation bracket at 6 p.m. at Kennedy High.

*--*

Anaheim Convention Center tournament

First round Cypress 49, Costa Mesa 39

Score by Quarters

Mesa 7 9 14 9 -- 39

Cypress 13 13 7 16 -- 49

Mesa -- Molina 2, Knox 9, Krikorian 4,

Waldron 19, Stankovic 3, Wase 0, Aleson 2.

3-pt. goals -- Knox 1, Krikorian 1. Fouled

out -- None. Technicals -- None. Cypress --

Oberle 4, Meixel 2, Dennis 8, Nitta 9, Lopez

15, Couso 0, Igawa 2, McIver 3, Stafford 0,

Givens 6. 3-pt. goals -- Dennis 1. Fouled out

-- None. Technicals -- Coach.

*--*