Hawks have a chance to win in final minute, fall to Pacific
Grove 56-47 in overtime
San Juan Bautista – It won’t provide the team any solace, but Anzar boys basketball coach Ed Cecena found a number of positives to take out of the Hawks’ 56-47 overtime loss to Pacific Grove in their Mission Trail Athletic League showdown Thursday.
“It just proves that we aren’t their pushovers anymore,” Cecena said after his team pushed the first-place Breakers to the limit before stumbling in the extra period. “We finally have the strength and players to compete.”
Anzar (12-6, 4-2 MTAL) rallied from a six-point deficit to start the fourth quarter and tied it with just under a minute left when Scott Benson muscled in a lay up.
The Hawks got the ball back on a turnover with 34 seconds left. Stephen Mockabee drove the baseline but his runner couldn’t fall and Pacific Grove (9-6, 5-0 MTAL) controlled the rebound.
The Breakers tried to set up an entry pass to the block with 15 seconds left, but Anzar’s Erik Olson tipped the pass up and controlled it and Anzar called time to draw up the final play.
Adrian Monroy dribbled the ball down and drove to the hoop but his shot was short and despite plenty of contact, no foul was called and the game went to overtime.
Pacific Grove took advantage of its second chance and quickly put the game away. The Breakers’ center Chris Hardee, who had 11 points in regulation, scored eight in the extra period as Pacific Grove started on a 10-0 run that sealed the deal.
“We fell apart a little bit in overtime,” Cecena said. “Hopefully we can take this and learn from it.”
Anzar controlled the tempo of the game in the first period, as it got its quick-paced offense going and prevented the Breakers from setting up their strong half-court defense.
Benson scored 10 of his game-high 24 points in the quarter and Ryan Waller drained a pair of 3-pointers to help the Hawks take an 18-12 lead.
Pacific Grove rebounded in the second and stepped up the defensive intensity. It outscored Anzar 12-7 in the period to trimmed the Hawks lead to one by halftime.
The Breakers continued to slow the game down in the third and had a 14-7 scoring advantage as it gained its first lead of the game and went into the fourth quarter on top 38-32.
“They’re a tough team,” Cecena said. “Once they set up their zone in the half court, it’s tough to score. You’ve got to give them credit. They executed their gameplan a little better than us.”
Benson added 13 rebounds to his strong scoring effort. Mockabee and Waller chipped in with eight points and Monroy had six. Olson had two points and seven rebounds.
