SAN MARINO – It's said that a sequel isn't typically better than an original.
While that nugget held true again Tuesday evening, the San Marino High boys' basketball team isn't asking for a refund.
Facing nonleague foe Rosemead for the second time in 10 days, the Titans used a breakout third quarter in turning a well-contested game into a 67-52 blowout.
“We already saw Rosemead and tried to dictate a certain tempo on defense,” Titans Coach Mihail Papadopulos said. “It wasn't there until we applied some full-court pressure in the third and created some mistakes.”
San Marino (7-3), which defeated Rosemead, 60-44, on Dec. 10 in the Poly Tournament, led, 35-28, after a jumper from junior guard Jasper Hwang at the 5:42 mark in the third quarter.
However, Rosemead (1-4) clawed back with a 6-0 run, highlighted by three straight inside power moves, the first two being two-foot shots from senior forward Danny Villalobos, and the last a layup from Dominic Salas.
The Salas bucket closed the Panthers within 35-34 with 4:25 remaining and led to a timeout.
The Titans responded to the Panthers' surge with a somewhat surprising 22-2 run that spanned nearly seven minutes and was capped by a three-pointer from Max Taw, assisted by Kwame Do, that came with 6:43 left in the fourth and put San Marino ahead, 57-36.
“In the first half, we weren't making shots because we were forcing contested shots,” said Taw, who finished with 14 points and three steals. “In the second half, we drove, kicked and got shots and we also created off our defense.”
Hwang started San Marino's run with an inside bucket that put the Titans up three, but was matched by a jumper from Villalobos to push the score to 37-36.
From that point on, however, the Panthers committed turnovers on five of their next six possessions, including a back-court violation, a double-dribble and traveling.
The Titans also picked off two passes in closing the quarter with a 12-0 spurt, highlighted by a pair of threes from Hwang and a three-point play when Taw converted a layup and a subsequent free throw with 4.7 seconds left after being fouled.
Taw's three points put San Marino up 52-36 to close the quarter.
Overall, the Titans hit three three-pointers in the third and connected on eight of 20 (40 %) three-point attempts.
“That's one of the big differences this year from last,” Papadopulos said. “Last year, as a team we shot somewhere between 25 and 30 %. This year, we're much better from that aspect.”
Titans' sophomore guard Jamal Etayeb accounted for most of the three-point barrage, hitting four of five attempts.
“It was a great job by the point guards of pushing up the ball and getting us looks,” Etayeb said.
San Marino's outside game countered Rosemead inside presence, as the Titans survived a strong effort from Villalobos, who scored a game-high 18 points to accompany his eight rebounds and two blocks.
Hwang led San Marino with 17 points and three steals, while Etayeb added 16 points and Do led the Titans with nine rebounds.
While that nugget held true again Tuesday evening, the San Marino High boys' basketball team isn't asking for a refund.
Facing nonleague foe Rosemead for the second time in 10 days, the Titans used a breakout third quarter in turning a well-contested game into a 67-52 blowout.
“We already saw Rosemead and tried to dictate a certain tempo on defense,” Titans Coach Mihail Papadopulos said. “It wasn't there until we applied some full-court pressure in the third and created some mistakes.”
San Marino (7-3), which defeated Rosemead, 60-44, on Dec. 10 in the Poly Tournament, led, 35-28, after a jumper from junior guard Jasper Hwang at the 5:42 mark in the third quarter.
However, Rosemead (1-4) clawed back with a 6-0 run, highlighted by three straight inside power moves, the first two being two-foot shots from senior forward Danny Villalobos, and the last a layup from Dominic Salas.
The Salas bucket closed the Panthers within 35-34 with 4:25 remaining and led to a timeout.
The Titans responded to the Panthers' surge with a somewhat surprising 22-2 run that spanned nearly seven minutes and was capped by a three-pointer from Max Taw, assisted by Kwame Do, that came with 6:43 left in the fourth and put San Marino ahead, 57-36.
“In the first half, we weren't making shots because we were forcing contested shots,” said Taw, who finished with 14 points and three steals. “In the second half, we drove, kicked and got shots and we also created off our defense.”
Hwang started San Marino's run with an inside bucket that put the Titans up three, but was matched by a jumper from Villalobos to push the score to 37-36.
From that point on, however, the Panthers committed turnovers on five of their next six possessions, including a back-court violation, a double-dribble and traveling.
The Titans also picked off two passes in closing the quarter with a 12-0 spurt, highlighted by a pair of threes from Hwang and a three-point play when Taw converted a layup and a subsequent free throw with 4.7 seconds left after being fouled.
Taw's three points put San Marino up 52-36 to close the quarter.
Overall, the Titans hit three three-pointers in the third and connected on eight of 20 (40 %) three-point attempts.
“That's one of the big differences this year from last,” Papadopulos said. “Last year, as a team we shot somewhere between 25 and 30 %. This year, we're much better from that aspect.”
Titans' sophomore guard Jamal Etayeb accounted for most of the three-point barrage, hitting four of five attempts.
“It was a great job by the point guards of pushing up the ball and getting us looks,” Etayeb said.
San Marino's outside game countered Rosemead inside presence, as the Titans survived a strong effort from Villalobos, who scored a game-high 18 points to accompany his eight rebounds and two blocks.
Hwang led San Marino with 17 points and three steals, while Etayeb added 16 points and Do led the Titans with nine rebounds.
http://www.pasadenasun.com/sports/tn-pas-sp-1223-sanmarinohoops,0,2568943.story
Source: Andrew Campa, Pasadena Sun