Marina perfect so far in Sunset

HUNTINGTON BEACH — Prior to tip-off before Sunset League games, Marina High boys’ basketball coach Roger Holmes goes into storytelling mode.

He shares with his team different stories about league wars of the past that he’s been a part of, either as a player at Fountain Valley or as coach at Marina.

He shares his memories, he says, as a way to not only give his team a historical perspective, but also to inspire for what’s about to transpire on the court.

Friday night at the Edison gym, the current Marina Vikings added their own story to the Sunset annals.

Marina came out strong defensively, held the lead throughout and eventually took a 63-54 victory from the Chargers to remain perfect in league play at 3-0.

Two of those wins have come on the road. Last Friday, the Vikings won at Fountain Valley.

Against Edison Friday, Marina, which improved to 16-3 overall, never trailed.

“I thought we were very active defensively right from the start,” Holmes said. “[The Chargers] missed some shots but I think our defensive effort had a lot to do with that.

“We were able to get an early lead and I thought we did a nice job of keeping them at bay for most of the game.”

Marina used an 8-0 run midway through the first quarter to go up, 16-6, but a couple baskets by Edison’s Jordan Zumwalt brought the Chargers to within 16-10 at the end of the quarter. The Vikings maintained the lead in the second quarter and built their biggest lead of the half, 29-20, with 1:45 left. Dylan Garrity, though, would score the final five points of the half, the final points coming on a three-point shot with 44 seconds left, to draw Edison to within 29-25 at the break.

Garrity was red-hot in the first half and led all scorers with 16 points. The sophomore guard picked up the slack for injured teammate Kyle Boswell, who, despite a bad back, played in spurts Friday. Boswell sat out the final four minutes of the second quarter and didn’t play at all in the fourth quarter.

“That, obviously, had a lot to do with the game,” Holmes said of Boswell’s injury and limited playing time. “He’s a great player. I thought Garrity had a great first half but we tightened up on him in the second half.”

Marina, known for its three-point shooting, was just one of 10 from behind the arc in the first half. Edison, meanwhile, was four of 11 from three-point range with Garrity accounting for three of those shots.

Only three Chargers scored in the first half — Garrity, Zumwalt and Max Prendergast — yet Edison still was able to contest the lead early in the second half.

A jumper by Prendergast in the first 23 seconds of the half narrowed Marina’s lead to 29-27. The Chargers had possession moments later with a chance to tie or take the lead but a fall-away jumper by Garrity from inside the key went off the back of the rim. At the other end, Marina’s J.J. James nailed a three-point shot and 21 seconds later, the freshman guard again hit a three to send Marina into a 35-27 lead with 6:38 left in the quarter.

James’ oldest brother, Garrett, came up with a nice fake to score on a bank shot to give the Vikings their biggest lead yet, 40-30. After Garrity hit a three-pointer, Tyler James, a junior and brother of Garrett and J.J., hit a three and was followed by a three-point shot by Brendan Holmes, and Marina began to pull away in increasing the lead to 43-30.

The Vikings ended the quarter on a 15-4 run, capped by another three-point basket by Brendan Holmes with four seconds left. Marina outscored Edison, 23-9, in the quarter, to take a 52-34 lead into the final eight minutes.

“I think we went from a seven-point lead to a 14-point lead really quick in that third quarter,” Roger Holmes said. “There were three or four stops we made in a row on defense and scored on the other end of the court. Our transition game was really good tonight.”

Edison, which fell to 1-2 in league and 11-8 overall, converted a steal and turnover into four points to pull to within eight (59-51) with 2:27 remaining. But Garrett James landed a dagger that ended any further comeback attempt by the Chargers. With the shot clock winding down, James drove inside the key and sent up a quick shot. He was hit on the wrist by Edison’s Mikey Rivera as his shot went up. The ball managed to drop through the net as James, a four-year varsity starter, was fouled. He sank his ensuing free throw and Marina again had a double-digit lead, 62-51, with 1:44 left.

Garrett James finished with 18 points and nine assists. Brendan Holmes led Marina with 24 points and also collected eight rebounds. Jacob Tricarico, Marina’s 6-foot-7 center, scored six points but grabbed 13 rebounds and had two blocks. Tyler James and J.J. James had nine and eight points, respectively.

“Jacob’s really been controlling the boards and he’s been doing a really great job on the glass,” Roger Holmes said.

Garrity led all scorers with 28 points. Zumwalt and Prendergast each had nine points.

Next week, Edison plays Wednesday at Newport Harbor and Marina doesn’t play until Friday when the Vikings travel to Esperanza. Both games start at 7:30 p.m.

MIKE SCIACCA covers sports. He can be reached at (714) 966-4611 or by e-mail at [email protected].