Five Takeaways: Sunny Hills vs. Yorba Linda
ANAHEIM — Saturday afternoon’s championship game of the Loara Tournament featured two of Orange County’s most well-coached programs in Sunny Hills and Yorba Linda. In a back-and-forth, chess match type of affair, the Mustangs outlasted the Lancers, 56-54. Below we…
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Continue ReadingANAHEIM — Saturday afternoon’s championship game of the Loara Tournament featured two of Orange County’s most well-coached programs in Sunny Hills and Yorba Linda. In a back-and-forth, chess match type of affair, the Mustangs outlasted the Lancers, 56-54. Below we give our five man takeaways from this game.
Yorba Linda’s brother duo one to keep an eye on
Junior forward Orlando Laws and sophomore forward Jordan Laws formed quite the one-two punch inside for the Mustangs. Orlando gets the starting nod and his ability to rebound, run the floor and finish with athleticism and fluidity around the basket brings a different type of game than his brother Jordan does off the bench. Jordan is a 6-foot-4, 200-pound bruiser off the bench who rebounds in and out of his area on both ends of the floor and can absorb and finish through contact in the painted area. The brothers combined for 17 points and 12 rebounds in the one-point victory.
Yoon set the tone for the Mustangs
If there’s one player who we can really point to as a guy who got his team off to a good start it was Yorba Linda guard Tanner Yoon. The 6-foot-2 senior came out of the locker room looking to be aggressive on the offensive end and found himself with plenty of room to drive and score around the basket in the opening period. Yoon scored eight early points for the Mustangs and finished with 12 overall which was good for the top scorer of the game.
Chad Nguyen ran the show for Sunny Hills
Before the game Sunny Hills’ coach Joe Ok pointed out a couple guys in particular to keep an eye on and point guard Chad Nguyen was one of them. The 5-foot-9 senior pulls all the right strings for the Lancers offense from knowing when to push the pace for transition opportunities and recognizing when to pull the ball out and run half-court offense. Nguyen’s combination of speed and quickness make him a guy who can get into the lane and put pressure on the defense to create open kick-out opportunities for teammates. Nguyen finished with 10 points and a handful of assists in the loss.
Kingsley Ashley’s versatility key to Lancers’ long term success
Kingsley Ashley has the ability to impact the game in a variety of ways and, if Sunny Hills is to make a run at a league title and have a strong appearance in its playoff division, his reach of impact into multiple facets of the game will be a catalyst. The 6-foot-3 junior is an athletic and active player on both ends of the floor who is a crafty finisher in the lane and rebounds well on both ends of the floor. Ashley finished with a near double-double with 10 points and nine rebounds.
Sunny Hills’ sophomore ZeBrien Watkins showed some glimpses of potential
ZeBrien Watkins didn’t get a ton of minutes in this tightly-contested game, but in the time he did see on the floor it was easy to tell that he has great feel for the game. The rangy 6-foot-3 guard showed great instincts when cutting and moving without the ball offensively and flashed some intriguing defensive potential with his length, lateral speed and anticipation in help-side situations.