If the Malibu-St. Bonaventure game last Friday was any indication of what’s to come, fasten your seat belts because boys basketball in the Tri-Valley League will feature plenty of twists and turns these next five weeks.
In an exciting league opener at Malibu High, St. Bonaventure outlasted Malibu, 53-49, despite a valiant comeback by the Sharks.
Trailing 44-36 to begin the fourth quarter, Malibu roared back to take the lead, 49-48, with 1:25 remaining when senior Jonathan Baldwin knocked down a baseline jumper.
But the Seraphs responded when Darius Vines made a layup off a back-cut for a 50-49 lead with 1:03 left. On the ensuing possession, Malibu’s Landon McBroom missed a shot in the lane that gave St. Bonaventure the ball with 48 seconds remaining.
St. Bonaventure worked the clock down to 15 seconds against Malibu’s 2-3 zone, when Jake Todey raised up and nailed an uncontested three-point shot from the left wing as the shot clock expired. It was only the second three-pointer of the game for the Seraphs.
“They hadn’t made a three all half. He let it go and I was like, ‘Please don’t let it go in,’” Malibu coach Bobby Tenorio said. “And it goes in. It was one of those things. If he misses, we were going to come down and score. We had the momentum.”
Malibu (7-10) subsequently turned the ball over on its final possession resulting in the four-point loss. Baldwin, who hit four three-pointers to lead Malibu with 14 points, said the Sharks’ offense was decent but the team needed improvement on the other end and on the boards.
“We played pretty well,” said Baldwin. “We fell behind a little at half but when we came back out after halftime we turned it up and battled back. But we need to talk more on defense and rebound better.”
Senior center Justin Holmes added 13 points and eight rebounds for the Sharks, while McBroom also scored 13. Friday was McBroom’s first game for Malibu after transferring from Paraclete High School in Lancaster at the start of the semester.
St. Bonaventure (7-7) was paced by 20 points from athletic 6-foot-4 senior Bryce Dixon, who has committed to play tight end for the USC football team in the fall. Vines and Tommy Quinn added seven points each.
After struggling through a 1-9 record in 2013 in their first year following promotion to the tough Tri-Valley League, Malibu players and coaches have vowed to be more competitive this season. The early going saw them deliver on that promise, with Baldwin connecting on back-to-back threes to give Malibu a 12-11 advantage in the first quarter.
Dixon led a surge by St. Bonaventure, claiming a steal and a layup to give the Seraphs a 22-16 lead at the 4:32 mark of the second quarter.
Baldwin’s third trey from downtown cut the deficit to 22-21 with 3:20 left in the half. His offensive presence was a big boost for the Sharks who often rely on All-League center Justin Holmes to put up big numbers every game.
“I was feeling pretty good since the first half when I made three threes. I just stayed confident through the whole game,” Baldwin said. “I definitely want to help the team out more on offense.”
But Dixon proved a handful for the Sharks with his athleticism and deft touch around the basket.
He scored six of the next eight Seraph points on layups, including an alley-oop from Vines that gave St. Bonaventure a 30-23 lead with less than a minute to play.
After McBroom knocked down a three, Vines countered with his own triple with six seconds left to close out the half and give the Seraphs a 33-26 lead at the break.
The third period was played evenly as both teams exchanged buckets throughout the stanza setting up the fourth quarter flourish.
“I thought we played well. We played tough,” said Tenorio. “The kids felt like we gave them the game. We are far more competitive than last year. We need energy all four quarters and I think we will be okay.”
With upcoming contests against Santa Clara, Oak Park, Bishop Diego and Oaks Christian, don’t expect anything less than a thrill ride through the Tri-Valley League.
Malibu next plays on Friday at home at 7 p.m. against Santa Clara, a team they defeated three weeks ago in the Pacifica Tournament.