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| The Vikings' Behzad Hashemi (far left) takes the ball out while guard Jacob Duffy (background right) makes a cut in the first quarter against a woeful Otay Ranch team. (Photo by Ed Piper) |
Even the Hilltop coaches noticed the spark that guard Jett Wilson gives the La Jolla basketball team.
"He's the reason they play the way they do," said Luke Kelley, the head coach of the host team of the Hilltop Invitational. One of his varsity assistants, long-time coach Manny Silva, nodded in agreement.
Against Otay Ranch on the fifth and last night of the tournament, Wilson got two technicals and was banished from the game.
Down to zero substitutes, with Langston Aron fouling out down the stretch, the Vikings held on against an erratic shooting Mustang squad and won a poorly officiated contest, 61-49.
With newly-instilled heart and an ability to hang on at the end of games, La Jolla (4-5), despite being short-handed, never let Otay Ranch get closer than eight points in the fourth quarter, at 53-45 and 55-47.
Plus Coach Paul Baranowski's team has done a good job of making free throws in the clutch. Captain and point guard Behzad Hashemi made six in a row, as the Mustangs had to keep fouling in the last minute to stop the clock in a failed attempt to come back.
Guard Jacob Duffy made another four in a row.
Harry Kaseff, a little-used reserve, bombed two threes in the final quarter as Baranowski had his skeleton crew spread the floor, use up the shot clock, then shoot as each 35-second stretch wound down.
The spread floor, the Vikings' free throw shooting, and Otay Ranch's ineptness were enough for La Jolla to hold on for the win, its first after two losses in the tournament, including the semifinal two nights before.
Hashemi led La Jolla with 24 points. Senior Nick Hulquist scored 13, including a trio of three-pointers. Wilson, who was still growling after the game, had eight, as did Duffy.
La Jolla, which led after early in the game, looked like it could blow the Mustangs out in the second quarter when the Vikes built a temporary 13-point lead at 28-15, but didn't. Hashemi showed exceptional speed and quickness in his best performance of the season. His control in driving to the basket has increased over last year.
In addition to taking the ball to the rim fearlessly, he often looked for a teammate breaking for the basket on the baseline.
Aron, positioned at the right box under the basket, more than once showed confidence and skill in backing into his defender to lay the ball up. This is a new development.
The 6'2" football player was one of the Vikings showing their physicality, along with Wilson. He flattened 5'8" Mustang point guard Diego Sanchez with 3:45 left for his fifth foul.
In one particularly poorly-officiated instance, the referees conferred at length after an Otay Ranch player was fouled, then shoved Duffy onto the floor at the baseline. The situation appeared to merit a technical foul, or off-setting fouls. Instead, the refs opted to make a no-call and went on with the game.
Fortunately, no one was injured during the roughly-played contest.
Viking starting wing Christian Gamboa didn't play because he said he didn't pack his uniform. Freshman starter Max Raulston said he had strep throat. Evan Brown, and Gabe and Diego Solis, all recovering from broken collarbones in football, were all at the game, unable to play.
Said Gabe wistfully as he shot baskets at halftime, "I was looking forward to this season. I've never played in this (Hilltop) tournament." (He missed it due to a football injury last year, as well.) He said, "(Shooting a basketball) It doesn't feel good. It (his left, injured shoulder) pops when I shoot. But at least I'm shooting."
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