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 | BOYS BASKETBALL: Santa Cruz Overpowers Harbor to Open SCCAL play
Maki’s offense and team’s pressure
too much for Pirates to handle....
By Joey McMurry
|
The Score: Santa Cruz 62, Harbor 53
The Star: Santa Cruz guard Zen Maki led the Cardinals in points with 21 and made three key 3-pointers to keep the momentum in Santa Cruz's favor.
The Turning Point: Santa Cruz turned up the pressure to begin the second quarter with a full-court press and never looked back.
The Quote: "Zen got it going. He's our man. We've been telling him to attack, attack, attack and that's what he did." —Santa Cruz head coach Bill Domhoff, about Zen Maki's big game.
What's Next? Harbor heads to Scotts Valley Friday for another Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League showdown. Santa Cruz hosts SLV Friday in its first league home game.
Bottom Line: In a showdown between two teams that will compete for the SCCAL league title, Harbor came out strong to start the game with the energy of its home crowd behind them. But Santa Cruz's pressure was too much for the Pirates to handle as they took the lead and never looked back.
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In the Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League opener for both teams, the Santa Cruz High boys basketball team shook off a slow start to outlast its cross-town rival.
The Cardinals got 21 points from senior guard Zen Maki, helping their cause in a 62-53 win Tuesday night at Harbor High.
Santa Cruz looked outmatched in the first quarter, but that changed very quickly.
Harbor came out strong behind three 3-pointers from point guard Jon Bogaard as it amassed an 11-2 lead before Santa Cruz called its first timeout.
The Cardinals had difficulty against the tight Pirates defense and missed multiple shots. Their first field goal did not come until there was only 2:47 left in the first quarter; all their points came from free throws prior to the bucket.
Harbor relied heavily on the three-ball to gain a 21-13 first quarter lead, but that changed in a hurry.
To start the second quarter, the Cardinals came out in a full-court press led by the hustle of guard Johann Schmidt. It was clear the Pirates were not prepared for the pressure.
"It was our plan to turn up the pressure from the start of the game," Santa Cruz head coach Bill Domhoff said.
Harbor looked uncomfortable facing the speed of the Cardinals' press and turned the ball over frequently.
"A few of the kids had trouble with the quickness," Harbor head coach Mike Gruber said.
The Cardinals also tightened up their 3-2 zone defense and put more pressure on the outside shots from Bogaard and Colin Gruber.
Bogaard and Gruber entered the game averaging 10.1 and 26.8 points per game, respectively.
Domhoff said Santa Cruz usually runs a 2-3 zone, but changed it up for this game to stop the strong shooting of the Pirates.
The momentum quickly swung in Santa Cruz's favor after Maki followed-up a shot gave Santa Cruz the lead at 22-21.
They never looked back.
Santa Cruz propelled themselves to a 31-27 halftime lead with strong offensive rebounding to go with their improved defense.
The Cardinals out-rebounded Harbor 19-10 in the first half.
Ty Demeo played strong down low for the Cardinals with 13 points and 10 rebounds and made a number of baskets at the end of the first half to pad Santa Cruz's lead.
Clayton Conroy also added 10 points and seven rebounds playing the post with Demeo.
Santa Cruz kept up the pressure in the second half using a full court press and taking advantage of their team's depth to combat the Pirates.
Bogaard went cold in the second half and did not score. Gruber, however, picked up the slack scoring 14 points after only scoring seven in the first half.
Gruber led a fourth-quarter surge, but each basket the Pirates made was countered by a Maki 3-pointer. Maki also finished with 21 points.
Despite Gruber catching fire, Santa Cruz continued to force turnovers, and the Pirates could not get anything going consistently on offense. Harbor turned the ball over 19 times.
"We missed a lot of threes," Gruber said.
The three-ball is a key part to the Pirates' offense, but Gruber acknowledged the Pirates' post game was absent as well.
"I think we are team-oriented where anyone can come in and play and help us out," Domhoff said. The Cardinals' team play definitely showed on the defensive end and ultimately gave them the victory at a packed Harbor gym.
The two teams will square off again Jan. 25 at Santa Cruz High in what should be an exciting game, as both teams will make adjustments and improve over the next month.
SANTA CRUZ
Zen Maki – 21 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists
Clayton Conroy – 10 points, 7 rebounds
Ty Demeo – 13 points, 10 rebounds
Johann Schmidt – 4 points, 6 rebounds
HARBOR
Jon Bogaard – 11 points
Colin Gruber – 21 points
Ramos Coss – 7 points
R.J. Espinosa – 6 points
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