Edison boys’ basketball opens CdM Beach Bash with win over Valley View
Even with a 5-2 record, Edison High boys’ basketball coach Rich Boyce says his team hasn’t had the start to the season he had hoped for.
With the Chargers’ first game coming roughly two weeks after most other teams due to many athletes playing on the football team — their first game was on Nov. 30, while Wednesday night’s opponent, Moreno Valley Valley View, opened its season on Nov. 19 — it has taken time for Edison to get into a rhythm.
In its first game of the Corona del Mar Beach Bash tournament at CdM High, Edison showed composure on offense and an ability to play well under a full press in a 49-34 pool-play win against Valley View.
It was a fast-paced game, with a full-court press by Valley View (6-3) early on forcing multiple turnovers. In one instance, Edison couldn’t get a timeout called quick enough before an inbound violation occurred in the first quarter, and just moments later, the Chargers were called for a back-court violation after Luke Serven lost control of the ball trying to cross midcourt while under pressure.
“They sped us up more than we wanted and that forced us to turn the ball over quite a bit,” Boyce said. “Luckily for us, we made some shots. We’re still not in form. We’re missing a lot of layups. We’re turning the ball over too much. Every day we just need to get a little better, then we’ll be OK at the end of the season.”
But the Chargers managed to clean things up from there, driving with force to the basket to retake a surrendered lead with five straight points before the end of the first quarter for a 15-13 lead.
Connor Collins had the hot hand in the first half for Edison, scoring 11 points before halftime, while Valley View’s Jeremiah Mitchell provided 11 of the Eagles’ 21 first-half points.
While Mitchell cooled off, scoring just two points in the second half, Collins stayed hot for the rest of the game, finishing with a game-high 22 points, including making all four of his free throws. The junior forward brought a diverse style to the game with an ability to shoot from three-point range and drive to the basket for layins.
“He’s a big offensive threat for us,” Boyce said of Collins, who made three three-pointers. “I don’t think he played that well — he had a few turnovers and I’m sure he’s kicking himself for it because he always does — but on the whole he’s still learning, too. He’s doing well.”
The Chargers came out flying to start the third, with Collins and Serven each making three-pointers thanks to efficient ball movement by their teammates. Valley View had only one of its five starters in the game for the beginning of the third quarter before bringing the four of them in after Edison took a 33-23 lead. Serven made four three points and finished with 12 points.
“We’re best when the ball’s moving,” Boyce said. “When it starts sticking, we become very average. We keep talking about ‘move the ball, move the ball.’ As soon as everyone gets on the same page, we’re going to be pretty good, I think.”
On Monday, Edison will travel to Hawaii for the Maui Invitational, but before then, the Chargers will have to stay focused on the Beach Bash. Their next pool-play game in the tournament is against Santa Barbara on Thursday at 4:30 p.m. at CdM.
Corona del Mar Beach Bash
Pool play
Edison 49, Valley View 34
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Edison 15 – 13 – 10 – 11 — 49
Valley View 13 – 8 – 4 – 9 — 34
E – Collins 22, Serven 12, Kwok 6, Luna 5, Fajardo 2, K. Boyce 2.
3-pt. goals – Serven 4, Collins 3.
Fouled out – None.
Technicals – None.
VV – Mitchell 13, James 6, Reliford 6, Anderson 5, Collins 4.
3-pt. goals – Anderson 1, Mitchell 1.
Fouled out – None.
Technicals – None.
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