By Matthew Nguyen, Staff Writer
This night, the boys’ basketball team’s late-game comeback fell short 50-58 in their home opener against the Edison Chargers.
The Barons had a rough start to open the game, failing to move the ball and execute effectively on offense. Their lax attitude, combined with a lack of urgency, resulted in a multitude of missed scoring opportunities in the first quarter. Defensively, Fountain Valley failed to cover and close out on Edison’s playmakers. These factors culminated in a 4-13 deficit after the opening quarter for the Barons.
“We came out slow, kind of soft. It took us about 12 minutes to get going. Can’t do that. They just wanted it more, it looked like,” said senior Kevin Zimmerle
The second quarter saw vast improvements for the Barons offensively as sophomore Jeremiah Davis took control of the game and scored five of the 14 in their second-quarter points. By comparison, their defense saw little to no improvements. A last-second three-pointer on the right wing to close the quarter in particular, hurt Fountain Valley as it killed the little momentum they had obtained. Instead of heading into the second half with only a four-point deficit, the Barons were down 18-25.
The half-time break did nothing for the Baron’s defensive woes as they continued to be burned from behind the arch. Fountain Valley had no answer for Edison’s lethal sharpshooters who seemed to be making every shot they put up. The Barons, however, continued to fight despite the looming deficit. A tough and-one by freshman Aden Casarez cut the lead down to five with seconds left in the quarter, but another closing three by the Chargers extended the score to 34-42 to close the third.
The Barons came out looking sharp during the final period despite being behind nine points. The two teams traded three-point shots to start the quarter before Fountain Valley took full momentum of the game and went on a 7-2 run, forcing a time-out from the Edison bench. The Barons pulled the game to a score of 46-47 with only three minutes left in the game. However, Fountain Valley’s offense stalled for the rest of the quarter, only scoring four more points, while the Chargers would finish with an 11 point run. The game would conclude with a final score of 50-58 Edison.
Heading into Friday’s upcoming game at Laguna Beach High School, the Barons believe a shift in their mindset is their key to victory. With a talented roster, the only thing holding them back is themselves.
“Attitude [and] energy, those two things, that’s all we need to win. I mean we’ve got one of the best teams we’ve seen in Fountain Valley in years and we just need our team to want it,” said Zimmerle.
