On January 31, 2023, the Fountain Valley boys varsity basketball team took on the Marina Vikings. Firing on all cylinders offensively, the Barons won 59-33. Senior JJ Gray and sophomore Parker Rodriguez led the way with 14 points and 18 points, respectively. With the win, Fountain Valley improved to a record of 18-9 over the season.
The game commenced with Fountain Valley winning the tipoff. Immediately afterwards, Junior Colin Risse pulled up for an elbow jumper, making the first points of the game. After a Marina missed three-pointer, sophomore Devin Payne pushed the ball up the court and passed the ball to an open Rodriguez in the corner, who made the shot and put up the Barons by five. After a Marina possession that resulted in a turnover, Risse continued his hot start, scoring a three-pointer off an assist by sophomore Devin Payne.
However, Marina countered with a pair of free throws, cutting the lead to 8-2. On the next Marina possession, a shot clock violation occurred thanks to Fountain Valley’s good defense. To further extend the Barons’ lead, Gray made a fadeaway baseline jumper. On the very next possession, Rodriguez made a corner three, assisted by senior Fernando Garcia. The first quarter ended 13-5, with Marina scoring a late three to cut the deficit.
The second quarter commenced with an early three-pointer from the wing by Rodriguez, assisted by Gray. The two’s chemistry continued onto the next possession, where Rodriguez caught a wayward pass and threw it back out to Gray, who scored a three-pointer. This extended the Fountain Valley lead to 15, but Marina chipped away at the lead by scoring a pair of free throws. Following a Marina possession that resulted in a missed three-pointer, Gray pushed the ball up and kicked it out to Payne, who scored an open layup. In the next two minutes, Gray and Rodriguez combined for three three-pointers to put up Fountain Valley 37-9 heading into the 2nd half.
The third quarter commenced with a three-pointer by Rodriguez, assisted by Garcia. Soon afterwards, Garcia got on the board as well, scoring a putback layup, then stealing a wayward Marina pass and driving in for an open layup. Though Marina countered with scoring a three, the Barons’ defense stood still, holding the Vikings to nine points during the quarter. Whether arising from stolen passes or offensive fouls, Marina turnovers led to easy transition points by Fountain Valley, which allowed them to extend their lead to 30 heading into the final quarter.
The final quarter started with Marina scoring a three-pointer off the bat. Gray countered by driving into the paint and scoring a challenging layup. Following a Marina miss, Fountain Valley pushed the ball up for an open layup. Despite several missed shots by the Barons during this quarter, the team was overall successful in maintaining their lead and moving the ball around to find the open man. Continuing to find opportunities, Fountain Valley’s ball movement was a key point of focus this quarter. Senior Jacob Swaner passed the ball to senior Ethan Huynh, who knocked down the unguarded three. In one of the last plays of the game, senior Michael Nguyen made a difficult reverse layup, as Fountain Valley led 59-33.
“We accomplished our goal for the day. Our defense was really good and that led to us getting really good shots and guys hitting shots and stuff like that,” head coach Roger Holmes. “Keep playing hard defense and everything will take care of itself.”
The Baron’s next game is against Edison on Feb. 2 at 7 p.m.
