Boys’ Basketball: Dana Hills stops Estancia

The stat sheet at halftime said a lot about the lack of offense by the Estancia High boys’ basketball. The Eagles had as many points as turnovers.

The Eagles scored 14 points and turned the ball over 14 times in the first half of their final game in their tournament, the Coast Classic. To make matters worse, the Eagles went into the break against Dana Hills having missed all nine of their second-quarter shots.

Estancia couldn’t make a jumper, a layup or a three-pointer in the second quarter. It wasn’t until the 5½-minute mark in the third quarter that the Eagles made a field goal, and by then Dana Hills was on its way to a 61-43 win on Wednesday afternoon.

The Eagles’ two-game winning streak in the tournament ended with a loss in the consolation round. They trailed Dana Hills by 20 at the break, and they fell behind by as many as 33 late in the third quarter.

Early in the fourth quarter, Dana Hills pulled its starters, only to bring them back after Estancia produced nine straight points to cut the deficit to 55-33. The Eagles’ pressure defense forced a handful of turnovers, and for the first time since a 50-second stretch late in the opening quarter, Estancia recorded consecutive baskets.

Dana Hills Coach Tom Desiano told his starters to get ready. Once they stood up midway through the fourth quarter, Estancia Coach Xavier Castellano looked over at Desiano, telling him that he didn’t need to bring his starters back.

Castellano definitely didn’t want to see the return of the Dolphins’ top scorer, Parker Romo. Through the first three quarters, Romo hit six three-pointers, giving him 20 points.

“I don’t have a choice,” Desiano responded to Castellano, as he ordered his players toward the scorer’s table.

It wasn’t Romo who snapped the Eagles’ run. It was Nathan Hernandez. He went in for a layup, giving him two of his 12 points in the game.

But the next seven points belonged to Estancia. And they came during a 13-second flurry.

Cameron Jones drove in for a basket, making it while Dana Hills fouled the point guard. Jones, who scored 10 of his 15 points in the fourth quarter, missed the foul shot, but Jeffrey William-Mensah was there for the putback. Then the Eagles stole the ball right away, finding a wide-open Tyler Van Dyke, who nailed a three-pointer.

With 2:38 left to play, Estancia was down, 57-40. There just wasn’t enough time for the Eagles to seriously rally for the win. They managed in the fourth quarter to score 21 points, falling one short of matching their point total from the previous three quarters.

“I think that was the best quarter we’ve played all year, just with the energy and the fire they came out with,” said Castellano, whose team outscored Dana Hills by 13 in the final eight minutes.

“Dana’s a really good team. They stuck in there [during Monday’s 52-44 second-round loss to Riverside] La Sierra, [which] blew us out by 41 [in Saturday’s tournament opener]. You never compare scores like that, but on paper, the kids see that, and it is what it is.”

Right from the start Dana Hills’ full-court pressure created havoc for Estancia. The Eagles couldn’t handle it, leading to easy transition baskets for the Dolphins (7-9).

Dana Hills went 3-1 during the Coast Classic, and Desiano said he liked the way his team played after suffering its lone setback in the four-day, 16-team tournament. Next for the Dolphins is their South Coast League opener against San Clemente on Jan. 8.

Estancia (8-7) has a couple of nonleague games next week, at home against Los Amigos on Tuesday and at Santa Ana on Wednesday, before it tips off Orange Coast League play at Saddleback on Jan. 8. Castellano said the two contests before league could only benefit the Eagles, who went 2-2 during the tournament.

“The kids love playing,” said Castellano, whose team is looking to improve on last season’s last-place finish in league.

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Coast Classic

Dana Hills 61, Estancia 43

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Estancia 11 – 3 – 8 – 21 — 43

Dana Hills 15 – 19 – 19 – 8 — 61

E – Jones 15, Pettingill 12, Van Dyke 4, William-Mensah 4, Winters 3, Alama 2, Gray 2, T. Brown 1.

3-pt. goals – Pettingill 2, Jones 2, Winters 1, Van Dyke 1.

Fouled out – None.

Technicals – None.

DH – Romo 20, Hernandez 12, Phillips 9, Hall 7, Arico 5, Stirtz 3, Brown 3, Larkins 2.

3-pt. goals – Romo 6, Phillips 1, Stirtz 1, Hall 1.

Fouled out – None.

Technicals – None.