LJ BB: Update

Viking big man Alex Pitrofsky (R) has the underside,

while teammate Mark Rawdin has back of the ball

as they battle Hornets for rebound. (Photo by Ed Piper)

You have to play the hand that you're dealt.

That's an aphorism taken from card-playing that says reality can be ever so cruel.

For the La Jolla High boys basketball team, circumstances aren't cruel. The players are still relishing playing, the coaching staff is still giving its all, and friends and families are eating it up in big doses, like at the Lincoln-La Jolla game Fri. night, Jan. 30.

Senior guard Ladd Castellano played his heart out. Frequently, the blond two-guard could be seen slapping his hands in frustration, or grimacing with the emotion that accompanies desire, motivation, and a will to do all one can in the face of adversity.

Half of the Vikings' Twin Towers, Alex Pitrofsky, shows game-by-game his increasing shot-blocking ability, athleticism in stretching out and taking up space near the key, and working to get better at the offensive end.

Short-stuff guard Gaynor Blackmon carried a lot of the Vikings' ball-handling duties in the continued absence of point guard Reed Farley. In the last two weeks, the senior headed to matriculate at the University of Colorado in the fall has probably logged more playing minutes than he did in the previous several games combined. Gaynor's a nice guy, appealing as far as his short stature amid much taller opponents. The occasional fan asked, "Who's that little guy?"

La Jolla took a tough 54-32 loss, dropping them further in the Western League hunt. But, you know what, they played as hard as they could. They didn't quit. They were just beat by the superior athleticism on the part of the visiting Hornets.

The Hornets are not a great team. But they were plenty good enough to disappoint the large, loud home crowd egged on by the increasingly visible La Jolla High band, which occupied the upper level of stands in the LJHS Big Gym and played the fight song repeatedly throughout the boys contest.

One week earlier, on Fri., Jan. 23, the band played throughout the girls game that was part of the Friday boys-girls doubleheaders.

The Vikings went down early, 13-2. They were struggling. Lincoln's outside shooting is suspect, but the Hornets' superior quickness and jumping ability are not. However, the red and black fought to get back in the game. Coach Paul Baranowski used key timeouts to reset and instruct, and he coaxed, cajoled, and encouraged in the way he consistently does. La Jolla trailed at halftime, 28-13.

Noteworthy recently have been senior guard Zach Duffy's contributions in setting up the offense and bringing the ball downcourt, again with Farley out. Duffy played probably the best ball of his varsity career in the last week. It wasn't as apparent against Lincoln, but he still used deceptive quickness. He didn't hit a key three the way he has in previous games. But it's not for lack of focus and heart.

Mark Rawdin and Pitrofsky as Twin Towers is a variant that Baranowski employs. La Jolla hasn't had this much height in several years, so the rebounding and shot-blocking they provide is unique. On one sequence with the Hornets, first Rawdin stuffed a shot, then Alex followed with his own block on the same possession by Lincoln. You have to appreciate the effort evident in that. As Mark said recently, "How about when Alex and I play at the same time?" They have gotten individual coaching from the assistants this year.

Mark, 6'4" or so, pulled down a respectable six rebounds. Pitro added five. Alex, 6'6" and growing, blocked three shots. Rawdin "faced" one. With eight points, Pitrofsky had a stat line of 8/5/3--not bad.

Ladd led scoring with 14 points.

Gaynor had a "wow" statistic: seven steals. That's a lot.

There are still three weeks left in the league schedule, then CIF playoffs. Viking fans, take heart.


Copyright 2015 Ed Piper