CdM's E. Rask steps up

By David Carrillo PeÃ±aloza

Jan. 13, 2008 12 AM PT

NEWPORT BEACH — In Davis on a football recruiting visit, Erik Rask itched to be back in town Saturday.

The Battle of the Bay between his Corona del Mar High boys’ basketball team against Newport Harbor was about six hours away.

By the time Rask boarded a plane in Sacramento at 1:30 p.m., the only thing on his mind was arriving on time for the afternoon shoot-around.

His father picked him up at John Wayne Airport close to 3. Just 30 minutes to get home, shower, dress, and drive to CdM.

“I was a little late,” he said. “Oh well.”

Rask figured he wouldn’t be shooting too much anyway. As the starting point guard, his responsibilities were to get his teammates involved and he did just that.

On a night in which both teams struggled scoring, Rask made it easier for the Sea Kings with 10 assists. He had a hand in 11 of the team’s 15 field goals, helping CdM win, 47-32, in front of a packed house at Newport Harbor.

After finding the open man throughout a physical game, now it was time for fans to seek out Rask afterward. They dished out high-fives to the 6-foot-1 senior, who added seven points and six rebounds.

“I missed out last year,” said Rask, referring to sitting out the season with a knee injury and watching the Sea Kings from the bench beat Newport Harbor, 53-46. “My sophomore year we played here and we lost. It’s good to go out against Newport Harbor on a win.”

Any victory against a cross-town rival can make one forget about the disappointments during a season. The Sea Kings (13-5) haven’t endured many in their quest to repeat as Pacific Coast League and CIF Southern Section Division III-A champions.

But Rask remembered one from the football season, the one where Newport Harbor handed CdM a 41-7 loss on Sept. 20. What better way to get back at the Sailors than show them his abilities again?

Rask, an inside linebacker being courted by UC Davis, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and the University of Pennsylvania, used his vision to allow five different players to score. One of those was Joe Eberhard, the player who was on fire the night before and finished with a career-high 35 points in a 68-53 big league win against Laguna Hills, nailed two huge shots in the fourth quarter against Newport Harbor (11-8) in a 70-second span.

The first opportunity for Eberhard came after Rask grabbed a defensive rebound and pushed the ball upcourt. Rask drove toward the lane before hitting Eberhard on the left for a wide-open three-pointer, giving CdM a 35-22 lead.

The second opportunity also resulted in a three-point play. Rask fed Eberhard near the baseline and the 6-6 senior forward converted the layup while being fouled. One free throw later and Eberhard, who finished with a team-high 13 points, put the Sea Kings up by 16 points with 4:29 left.

At that point Newport Harbor hadn’t scored in the quarter, misfiring on so many shots that the only thing the Sailor faithful could mock the CdM fans about was that football game in the fall.

Defensively, CdM limited Newport Harbor 6-9 center Kyle Caldwell’s scoring chances. The senior ended his team’s scoring woes by making two free throws at the 3:33 mark. Caldwell finished with a game-high 18 points and 11 rebounds.

The Sea Kings used a zone defense, putting Eberhard, 6-6 forward Adam Brakeville and even 6-3 guard Sean Donovan, smaller and more athletic players on Caldwell.

“We just had a rough night in the offensive end. It just seemed like we were out of sync the whole night,” said Newport Harbor Coach Larry Hirst, whose team never made more than three field goals in either of the last three quarters, where it combined to shoot 25.8% percent. “Every time something good would happen we just wouldn’t finish it. We’d get a steal, or we’d get a loose ball, but then we wouldn’t get a basket.”

Rask made sure the Sea Kings got their baskets, even for his twin brother, Kevin. With about three minutes left, with no player to give the ball to, Rask flipped it to Kevin behind the three-point line.

A night after someone asked CdM Coach Ryan Schachter about Rask’s whereabouts, Kevin joked, “What about Kevin?” Rask found Kevin, who buried the three-pointer to make his presence felt.

“Kevin stepped up big,” Rask said of his brother, a reserve. “He played some good defense and he spotted up with confidence and knocked it down. That kind of put the game away right there.”

Nonleague

Corona del Mar 47,

Newport Harbor 32

SCORE BY QUARTERS

CdM – Eberhard 13, Kaluz 11, Brakeville 7, E. Rask 7, Ragsdale 6, K. Rask 3.

3-pt. goals – Eberhard 2, Ragsdale 2, K. Rask 1, Brakeville 1.

Fouled out – None.

Technicals – None.

NH – Caldwell 18, Kuhns 6, Volz 5, Whiteside 3.

3-pt. goals – Kuhns 2, Caldwell 2.

Fouled out – None.

Technicals – None.