Breakers find a way to land the Eagles

Mike Sciacca

Going by the motto, “Good teams find a way to win,” the Laguna Beach

High girls’ basketball team did just that Tuesday night against host

Calvary Chapel.

Laguna struggled early, lacked discipline and couldn’t found its

touch offensively, yet the Breakers indeed found a way to win,

recording a 64-57 Pacific Coast League victory.

That win, coupled with a Jan. 6 league opening victory over

Northwood, puts Laguna at 2-0 in league play.

Calvary Chapel opened up a 32-28 halftime lead, but Laguna

outscored the Eagles, 16-9, in the third quarter, to take a 44-41

advantage into the final eight minutes.

“We really didn’t play very disciplined, never really got in a

good groove on offense,” Laguna coach Stacy Howard said. “We have to

keep reminding ourselves that we are such a young team. We expect

them all to grow up on the court so fast and remembering that they

are young is something to keep in mind.

“It was a strange flow to the game, start to finish. A lot of

transition game, not a lot of set offense from either team. We got

out to an early lead, I think it was 9-3 or 9-4, and then let them

back in and tied at the end of the fist quarter. We seemed to have a

real let down in the second quarter, but still scored 28 in the half

and only trailed by four. We bounced back in the third with good

defense.”

Laguna opened up its biggest lead of the night -- 12 points --

with 1:30 to go.

However, the Eagles nailed a pair of three-point shots to narrow

that lead, but Laguna responded by hitting its free throws in the

final minute.

Despite hitting those key foul shots, the Breakers were just 15 of

27 from the charity stipe.

“That still needs work,” Howard said of her team’s free throw

shooting. “But overall, in a sloppy game for us, we found a way to

win.”

Calvary Chapel’s Chelsea DeLuca led all scorers with 29 points.

“It was a good overall game from her, but we did a decent job of

shutting her down and keeping pressure on her all night. Eight of her

points came in the last minute of the game.”

Claire Bevacqua was right behind DeLuca and led Laguna with 28

points.

“She played a fantastic all-around game, especially in the second

half,” Howard said. “She had steals off the press and in the half

court, tons of tips and a couple of blocked shots, as well. She was

big on the boards.

“We pressed the whole game, kept the pressure on up top and caused

a bunch of turnovers. Andrea Ventura also played a great game for us.

She got every important rebound that we needed and played great ‘D’

all night. Their posts were not a factor in the paint and that was

due in large part to Vinnie’s defense down low.”

Laguna had gotten the league race off to a great start by

defeating visiting Northwood, 58-46.

The Breakers did it with defense, as they held the Timberwolves to

just seven points in the third quarter, where they outscored the

visitors, 17-7.

Brittany Clark paved the way offensively for Laguna with a

game-high 22 points.

She also came up with five rebounds and four steals.

She was followed by Claire Bevacqua who scored 14 points to go

along with 13 rebounds, two blocks and six steals, and Tess Grogan

who, behind a pair of three-point baskets, finished with 13 points

and added six steals.

“Keys to victory were discipline, unselfishness and desire, from

players one through 10, consistently throughout the entire game,”

Howard said.

The 2-0 start to league isn’t surprising to Howard.

“My overall thoughts on a 2-0 start in league is, ‘wow!’ It’s not

unexpected in our own minds, but I’m not sure the last time that this

school started league play 2-0 in girls basketball. It’s been awhile.

“The kids have worked really hard to get where they are right now

and it’s all paying off for them. They understand the importance of

league play and are committed to following through on the

expectations they have of themselves. It’s a great start!”

In boys’ basketball, Laguna dropped a tough game to Northwood,

59-53, in the PCL opener for both schools.

The Breakers were ineffective from the perimeter against a

talented Northwood team, and also doomed their chances by hitting

just nine of 20 free throw attempts.

The second quarter separated the teams, as the Timberwolves

outscored the Breakers, 11-5.

Ivan Kovacevic led Laguna with 14 points, getting six of his

points on a six of 11 performance from the foul line.

He was four of 11 from the field.

In addition, the 6-foot-5, forward/center, a returning all-league

and All-CIF-SS player, pulled down 13 rebounds and had four blocked

shots.

“It was a disappointing loss for us,” Laguna Coach Mark Hill said.

“They did a good job of containing Ivan, and we needed to be

effective from the perimeter, which we weren’t. In addition, we shot

a horrendous 9-20 from the free-throw line. So, this was frustrating,

especially to be at home and not have anyone really step up and shoot

well.

“We also did a poor job defensively of getting beat off the

dribble for lay-ups by their secondary scorers.”

Laguna, which visited Pacific Coast League foe Calvary Chapel

Wednesday, returns to league action tonight (7 p.m.) at Tesoro.