League play is upon the winter league teams and the Los Alamitos High boys basketball team looks poised to challenge for a Sunset League Championship. The Griffins are 3-0 in league play after wins over Edison High and Newport Harbor High on Friday and Saturday, respectively.
The Griffins topped Edison (albeit with the Chargers missing one of their top players) 74-44, on Friday at Edison High. Still, the lopsided score against a solid team like the Chargers shows a sign of the Griffins clicking at the right time.
The Chargers hung with the Griffins early, but by the end of the second quarter and start of the third, the Griffins began to pull away. The Griffins were able to spread the ball around get points from 12 different players by the end of the game. Samori Guyness finished with a game-high 23 points and Wes Trevino and Jordan Taylor each contributed 11. Trent Minter finished with seven points.
“Our ability to go on that 8-0 run, to make an eight-point lead 16, and all that, really does come down to depth and conditioning, probably,” Head Coach Nate Berger said.
The Griffins followed the Edison win with a 69-57 win over Newport Harbor on Saturday. Los Alamitos recently finished up the Classic at Damien Tournament after Christmas, where they faced some of the top teams in California and the nation. The Griffins went 1-3 in the tournament, including a 90-83 loss to Parish Episcopal, the No. 13 team in the state of Texas and No. 2 team in its division, according to MaxPreps rankings. The Griffins are currently No. 44 in California. Their other two losses came against No. 16 Santa Margarita (88-81) and No. 20 Clovis North (63-60).
Berger said the team took the opportunity to learn about its weaknesses and try to improve upon those. He said the team has focused on what it learned from the tournament and will try to build on the momentum from the experience and challenge of top-level competition.
“This is what we need to get better at and let’s be a little bit more mentally focused,” Berger said. “I think we’re in a really good spot to step into league games and compete inside.”
The Griffins (10-6 overall) will host Marina High on Friday at 7 p.m. They will also host Fountain Valley on Jan. 15 at 7 p.m.
