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| Vikings basketball players and cheerleaders stand at attention to observe the National Anthem prior to the LJ-Mission Bay game at home Jan. 17. (Photo by Ed Piper) |
School administrators "switched things up" to pacify the crowd at La Jolla's basketball game Fri., Jan. 24, after unsportsmanlike behavior marred the previous home game, a loss to visiting Mission Bay Jan. 17. (See game story.)
La Jolla High officials moved the scorer's table to the northern sideline, closed the visitors' bleachers, and employed no loud high-energy music during breaks, in a dramatic visual and aural transformation from the earlier game. That event was marked by students' chant of a profane phrase, and players posturing and gesturing in defiant ways during and at the conclusion of the game.
Unfortunately for the lowly Vikings' basketball team, now 0-4 in the Western League, 7-15 overall, "the song remains the same," as Led Zeppelin told us. Visiting St. Augustine, despite missing two starters from its team ranked third in CIF, ran away in the fourth quarter with a 70-47 rout of Coach Paul Baranowski's squad.
Western League Player of the Year Chibuzo Agbo and fellow frontcourtman Nakial Cross punctuated the accelerated finish with monstrous two-handed dunks, which left the shorter, hard-luck Vikings on their heels, staring up in awe.
La Jolla did score a moral victory of a sort, playing the Saints close in opening moments--a contrast to their 10-0 deficit to the Buccaneers to start the 50-30 defeat the week before. In fact, Diego Solis, Christian Gamboa, and Max Raulston and company led St. Augustine 14-12 at the end of the first quarter.
Then Coach Mike Haupt's finely-tuned machine got rolling, and the Saints outscored La Jolla 17-6 in the second period. Still, the lead was only 29-20 at halftime.
Baranowski was up off the bench, encouraged by his team's push to within 10 points, at 52-42, early in the fourth quarter after going down as many as 18 points in the third quarter.
During the push, which began with the Vikings trailing 42-24 with five minutes left in the third, Raulston scored on an assist by Solis. Diego hit one of two free throws. Sophomore Brennan Ross made a pair of free throws after Agbo slammed and hung onto the rim too long for the referees' liking for a technical foul.
Then Solis, playing his heart out like all of his over-matched teammates, opened the fourth period with a layup under duress to draw within 52-41. Even though Gamboa was denied on a dipsy-doodle one-handed layup attempt, swinging around to the right side of the basket in an attempt to use the rim as protection, Max grabbed the rebound and was fouled on his putback.
Raulston canned one of the two awarded free throws. Scoreboard: Saints 52, Vikings now 42, pulling closer.
But Haupt gathered the troops, instructed Agbo and his sizeable minions to play with discipline, and La Jolla didn't really threaten down the stretch. The veteran coach used all his subs, showing little concern that his side would lose.
"We have a good team," was his comment when asked about his liberal substituting after the 23-point win.
Isaiah Brickner, a St. Augustine junior who, with Agbo, led all scorers with 21 points each, was complimented after the game on a trio of soft left-handed layups down the paint in closing minutes. "I'm naturally a right-hander," the genial 6'3" guard said, smiling as the LJHS gym, this night calm, emptied. "I don't usually shoot with my left hand."
Solis scored 16 on a pair of three-pointers. The 5'10" lefty helped lead a push during the productive opening period when the Vikings, trailing 9-5, scored nine straight points to lead 14-9. In that streak, Ross, who has struggled, hit a three-pointer in between a three by Gamboa and a basket by Solis. The other point was a free throw by Raulston, who at 6'2" but a good leaper was obviously motivated playing the bigger Saints players.
Cross and Agbo are both listed at 6'7".
St. Augustine's other All-CIF player besides Agbo last year, 6'6" guard Luke Haupt, sat out his second game this week. He missed the Saints' win over Mission Bay Jan. 21. He is the coach's son. The younger Haupt said after the game he had hurt his back, though he plans to be back on the court next week.
Another starter for the visitors, Tyson McWilliams, was also unable to play, giving the Vikings a little more chance to compete. St. Augustine is now 3-1 in the Western League, 19-4 overall. They were ranked number one in CIF until they suffered a two-point loss to Cathedral Catholic Jan. 14, their only loss so far in league play.
Viking freshman Vincent Ricchiuti hit a pair of three-pointers, his reason for being in the starting lineup. The first one came midway through the second quarter to put La Jolla in the lead, 17-13. The other came at the 5:24 mark of the third quarter, the Vikings trailing 40-28. That gave Ricchiuti six points on the night.
Demonstrating the power of the private parochial school, which offers scholarships to star student athletes, the Saints, despite being short-handed, outscored their hosts 33-10 over a 12-minute span from one minute left in the first quarter until five minutes left in the third.
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