Sage Hill victorious in opener, but needs time to gel

Six of the 11 players on the Lightning roster have only had one practice, but that doesn’t hold them back against Spartans.GARDEN GROVE -- The Sage Hill School boys’ basketball team has been substantially short-handed in the weeks leading to its season opener on Tuesday night. With many of the Lightning fall sports teams going deep into the CIF playoffs, six players were only able to get one practice under their belts before they took the floor at Orangewood Academy.

Despite the rust, Sage Hill’s superior talent shined through, and the team emerged with an easy 53-38 nonleague victory.

Sage Hill (1-0) boasts three cross country runners and three football players who joined the team after finishing up their respective sport’s seasons last weekend.

Jamie McGee, quarterback on the football team, nailed the first basket of the game -- a three-pointer -- and finished with seven points and three steals. Connor Rose, a top runner on a Lightning cross country team that went to the state meet, added six points and four rebounds.

Michael Morgan, a 6-foot-4, 230-pound lineman on the school’s football team, dominated the action inside.

Morgan, a senior center, had a team-high 17 points and eight rebounds in his three quarters of action, during which Sage Hill built up a 47-14 lead. A smaller Spartans squad could not contain Morgan, who was fresh off a CIF quarterfinals run in football.

“I liked Morgan tonight. He showed nice, soft hands and he finished his chances inside,” Sage Hill Coach Steve Keith said.

Sage Hill’s three most experienced perimeter players -- McGee, Tim Lefler and Nick Witte -- started slow before making things happen on defense by producing steals and setting up baskets in the second half.

“Once they settled down, they showed what they can do by causing turnovers on one end and creating scoring opportunities on the other,” Keith said.

Sage Hill held Orangewood (1-1) to seven first-half points and seven points in the third quarter. Orangewood’s David Portilla tallied a game-high 19 points -- 16 in the second half -- mostly against Sage Hill’s second string.

“The fact that they are so long prevented us from getting good shots early,” Orangewood Coach Leslie Aragon said.

“It was everything a first game should be, especially when half the team has only had one practice,” Keith said. “It was good for them to work up a sweat.”

Sage Hill figures to improve as the football players and cross country runners gel with the rest of the team.

“We are just desperate for practice time,” Keith said. “Six of our 11 players had their first practice last night. We just need more gym time.”

Nonleague

Sage Hill 53,

Orangewood Academy 38

Score by Quarters