#7-ranked Glendale entered with an 8-game win streak and a lofty ranking, but without injured Gor Plavchyan the Vaqueros fell to visiting Citrus, 73-55, as the Owls claimed a share of first place in the WSC-South Saturday night.
Citrus (9-4, 2-0) got strong performances from SF Daniel Cheek, who had 5 three-pointers and 19 pts, Ctr Chris Reyes, who had a double-double with 15 pts and 11 rebs plus 5 blocked shots, and PG Justin Childress, who had 11 pts, 5 rebs, 5 asts and 3 steals.
And Glendale (13-3, 1-1) struggled to score without the 6-7 sophomore Plavchyan, who is out with a broken right hand. The Vaqueros shot just 28% from the floor for the game, and basically lost any chance at the win when PF Emmett Duvall picked up two quick fouls and fouled out with 8:13 remaining.
Early on, the teams traded scoring runs as Citrus scored 8 straight points to lead, 8-2, after Duvall opened the game with a pair of free throws for Glendale. Then the Vaqueros went on a 9-0 run to lead, 11-8, after a jumper by Emerson Castaneda. The Owls answered with a 7-0 run to lead, 16-11, midway through the first half.
But after that, Citrus gradually pulled away. Cheek made back-to-back threes to push the Owl lead to 22-13, and SG Dominique Walker added a free throw with 8:07 left to push the lead to double digits at 23-13. Citrus held a lead the rest of the first half, and led by 11 points at the break after PG Shaquille Barker scored on a driving lay-up just before the halftime horn.
And the Citrus lead increased as the second half progressed. Walker scored off a pass from Cheek in the opening seconds of the half to make it 35-22. Cheek made a pull-up jumper to make it a 15-point game at 40-25. A 3-pointer by SF John Roach made it 47-31 with 13:40 left. Then a 3-pointer by Cheek and a pull-up jumper by Childress made it 52-31, prompting a Glendale timeout with 12:40 left.
Glendale rallied to cut the deficit to 10 points at 57-47 after a jumper by PG Jason Moore with 9:15 remaining. But then SG Jordan Jefferson scored on a fast break off a pass from Childress, was fouled an completed the 3-point play with 8:42 left to make it 60-47. Then Duvall picked up his 4th and 5th fouls in quick succession, fouling out with 8:13 left and ending any realistic chance Glendale had at continuing the comeback.
Duvall finished with 16 pts and added 6 rebs and 3 steals. PF Sammy Darling, who started in place of Plavchyan, had a very strong game with 11 pts and a game-high 14 rebs despite taking a hard fall early in the second half. But no other Vaquero scored in double figures. Castaneda had 7 pts and 4 steals.
I spoke briefly with Plavchyan before the game, and he said he expects to return to action in about 3 weeks.
box score
Saturday, January 11, 2014 - 5 pm
at Verdugo Gym, Glendale
WSC-South
Citrus Owls 73:
3-Justin Childress, PG - 5/8 fg, 5 reb, 5 ast, 3 stl, 4 pf, 11 pts
10-Dominique Walker, SG - 2/3 fg, 3/5 ft, 2 reb, 2 ast, 1 pf, 7 pts
12-Daniel Cheek, SF - 7/10 fg, 4 reb, 2 ast, 2 pf, 19 pts
14-Steven Polee Jr., PF - 1/7 fg, 1/3 ft, 3 reb, 3 ast, 3 pf, 4 pts
23-Chris Reyes, C - 5/7 fg, 5/8 ft, 11 reb, 5 blk, 3 pf, 15 pts
20-Jordan Jefferson, G - 1/1 fg, 3/3 ft, 4 pf, 5 pts
32-Edgardo Campos, C - 0/1 fg, 2 reb, 1 pf, 0 pts
34-Shaquille Barker, G - 2/3 fg, 2/2 ft, 1 pf, 6 pts
5-Therique Card, G - 0/1 fg, 1/2 ft, 3 reb, 2 stl, 3 pf, 1 pt
30-John Roach, F - 2/5 fg, 1 ast, 1 blk, 1 stl, 1 pf, 5 pts
15-Rohjon Brett, F - 0/1 fg, 1 reb, 1 ast, 2 pf, 0 pts
team rebounds: 6
Totals: 25/47 fg (.532), 15/23 ft (.652), 37 reb, 14 ast, 6 blk, 6 stl, 25 pf, 73 pts
3-pt fg (8): Cheek 5, Chhildress, Polee, Roach
Turnovers (20): Childress 6, Reyes 4, Barker 3, Cheek 2, Roach 2, Polee, Campos, Brett
Glendale Vaqueros 55:
10-Jalen Etienne, PG - 1/10 fg, 5/6 ft, 3 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl, 3 pf, 7 pts
22-Emerson Castaneda, SG - 3/11 fg, 1 reb, 4 stl, 3 pf, 7 pts
24-Sammy Darling, PF - 3/9 fg, 4/4 ft, 14 reb, 1 stl, 3 pf, 11 pts
30-Sontiago Grady, SF - 2/5 fg, 2/3 ft, 4 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl, 2 pf, 6 pts
35-Emmett Duvall, C - 5/11 fg, 6/9 ft, 6 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk, 3 stl, 5 pf, 16 pts
11-Jason Moore, G - 2/7 fg, 1/2 ft, 2 reb, 2 ast, 1 pf, 5 pts
40-Nick Kahn, F - 0/5 fg, 0/2 ft, 3 reb, 2 pf, 0 pts
12-Wayne Robinson, F - 1/2 ft, 1 pt
20-Vahe Aristakessian, F - 1/2 fg, 0/2 ft, 2 reb, 1 pf, 2 pts
21-Jamal Taylor, G - 0 pts
team rebounds: 3
Totals: 17/60 fg (.283), 19/60 ft (.633), 38 reb, 5 ast, 1 blk, 10 stl, 20 pf, 55 pts
3-pt fg (2): Castaneda, Darling
Fouled Out: Duvall 8:13 left
Turnovers (13): Duvall 3, Moore 3, Grady 2, Darling 2, Etienne, Castaneda, Robinson
Halftime Score: Citrus 33, Glendale 22
Updated Records: Citrus 9-4, 2-0 in WSC-S; Glendale 13-3, 1-1 in WSC-S
