Boys Basketball: Desert unable to solve Viewpoint's swarming defense in playoff loss
Feb. 18, 2015
ALONSO TACANGA/Valley Press
EDWARDS AFB — Things could have gone better for Desert during the second quarter of its CIF-SS Division 5AA first-round matchup on Wednesday night.
But after enjoying one of their best quarters of the season, the Scorpions couldn't avoid one of their most unfortunate ones in a 68-36 defeat at the hands of third-seeded Viewpoint.
"That second-quarter it was just ..." Desert coach Michael Williams said. "I called like three timeouts in the quarter."
Following a first period in which the unfazed Scorpions (14-8) went blow by blow against the mighty Patriots (19-7), it all came to a halt as Viewpoint upped its defensive pressure.
The result was a turnover-filled, three-point second quarter for Desert, which went from leading 13-12 late in the first quarter to down 39-16 at halftime, a 27-3 run.
"Definitely, in the first quarter we played some of our best basketball of the year," Williams said. "(Viewpoint) just ratcheted up the pressure."
Josh Bell scored 10 points and Caige McDuffie added seven for the Scorpions, who went without a field goal in the second period.
The intense pressure from Viewpoint didn't go away to start the second half. In multiple occasions, the Scorpions, who were limited to five points in the third quarter, had trouble merely inbounding the ball or getting it past midcourt.
"We just ran against a very deep team," said McDuffie, a senior. "We got tired and we just lost our legs."
Desert had faced a similar opponent earlier this season. Viewpoint belongs to the Gold Coast League, the same one as Paraclete, whom the Scorpions played on Dec. 18 (a 54-38 loss).
"It's just a different brand of basketball," Williams said. "It's just intense man-to-man. We were prepared for it, but being prepared and then kind of playing and executing is different, so that definitely gave us fits."
Viewpoint won for the fourth time in its past five games. Two of those wins coincidentally came against the Spirits, who are currently taking part in the Division 4A playoffs.
Desert, which came into the game a winner of five of its last six games, found some of its offense again in the fourth and won the quarter 15-14.
Despite the lopsided final margin, Williams was pleased with his team's approach throughout the game.
"Don't look at the scoreboard," Williams said. "Whether it's playing or you're doing your job or just being a family man, you want to do your best. You want to be able to look at yourself in the mirror at the end of the day and say to yourself, 'Hey, I went 100%, no matter what.'"
Particularly during the first quarter, the Scorpions did just that. McDuffie scored all of his points there and an upset was in the making.
Desert's zone defense forced the Patriots into a handful of misfired 3-pointers, but the Scorpions couldn't contain 6-foot-6 forward Miye Oni, who scored nine of his game-high 23 points in the opening period.
"That was our game plan coming in," said Oni. "We did that really well to just get in the paint and attack their zone."
Although it looked feasible early on, David wouldn't take down Goliath on this night. A monster response from the kids from the Gold Coast League put those thoughts to rest promptly.
Still, the Scorpions had no reason to hang their heads.
"At the end of the day, I could look in the mirror and say I coached the best I could," Williams said. "And I can look at the kids, and we had all these guys buy in and they played hard. That's all I could ever ask from them."
ALONSO TACANGA/Valley Press
EDWARDS AFB — Things could have gone better for Desert during the second quarter of its CIF-SS Division 5AA first-round matchup on Wednesday night.
But after enjoying one of their best quarters of the season, the Scorpions couldn't avoid one of their most unfortunate ones in a 68-36 defeat at the hands of third-seeded Viewpoint.
"That second-quarter it was just ..." Desert coach Michael Williams said. "I called like three timeouts in the quarter."
Following a first period in which the unfazed Scorpions (14-8) went blow by blow against the mighty Patriots (19-7), it all came to a halt as Viewpoint upped its defensive pressure.
The result was a turnover-filled, three-point second quarter for Desert, which went from leading 13-12 late in the first quarter to down 39-16 at halftime, a 27-3 run.
"Definitely, in the first quarter we played some of our best basketball of the year," Williams said. "(Viewpoint) just ratcheted up the pressure."
Josh Bell scored 10 points and Caige McDuffie added seven for the Scorpions, who went without a field goal in the second period.
The intense pressure from Viewpoint didn't go away to start the second half. In multiple occasions, the Scorpions, who were limited to five points in the third quarter, had trouble merely inbounding the ball or getting it past midcourt.
"We just ran against a very deep team," said McDuffie, a senior. "We got tired and we just lost our legs."
Desert had faced a similar opponent earlier this season. Viewpoint belongs to the Gold Coast League, the same one as Paraclete, whom the Scorpions played on Dec. 18 (a 54-38 loss).
"It's just a different brand of basketball," Williams said. "It's just intense man-to-man. We were prepared for it, but being prepared and then kind of playing and executing is different, so that definitely gave us fits."
Viewpoint won for the fourth time in its past five games. Two of those wins coincidentally came against the Spirits, who are currently taking part in the Division 4A playoffs.
Desert, which came into the game a winner of five of its last six games, found some of its offense again in the fourth and won the quarter 15-14.
Despite the lopsided final margin, Williams was pleased with his team's approach throughout the game.
"Don't look at the scoreboard," Williams said. "Whether it's playing or you're doing your job or just being a family man, you want to do your best. You want to be able to look at yourself in the mirror at the end of the day and say to yourself, 'Hey, I went 100%, no matter what.'"
Particularly during the first quarter, the Scorpions did just that. McDuffie scored all of his points there and an upset was in the making.
Desert's zone defense forced the Patriots into a handful of misfired 3-pointers, but the Scorpions couldn't contain 6-foot-6 forward Miye Oni, who scored nine of his game-high 23 points in the opening period.
"That was our game plan coming in," said Oni. "We did that really well to just get in the paint and attack their zone."
Although it looked feasible early on, David wouldn't take down Goliath on this night. A monster response from the kids from the Gold Coast League put those thoughts to rest promptly.
Still, the Scorpions had no reason to hang their heads.
"At the end of the day, I could look in the mirror and say I coached the best I could," Williams said. "And I can look at the kids, and we had all these guys buy in and they played hard. That's all I could ever ask from them."