Although he was none too pleased with the way his team started Friday’s season opener, Palisades High boys basketball head coach Vejas Anaya had to be ecstatic with the way it finished — outscoring Rancho Dominguez 49-32 in the second half for a 71-65 nonleague victory.
It took well into the fourth quarter for Palisades to grab the lead but conditioning and pressure defense were the difference as the Dolphins to give their second-year coach his first season-opening win. Palisades dropped its opener to Santa Monica last year.
Photo: Steve Galluzzo
“I’m happy with the win but from now on we have to try not leave at lunchtime,” Anaya said, referring to the early tip-off time. “What’s not to love about the second half? I’m glad the guys settled down and got into their sets and started to do what we wanted.”
Whether it was first-game jitters or the afternoon bus ride, Palisades looked out of sync in the beginning and fell behind 8-0. Will Johnson made the Dolphins’ first basket of the season on a three-pointer, but Rancho Dominguez led 17-6 after eight minutes.
“It took us a while to get into the flow of the game and defensively we had to pick up our effort,” said Joseph Robinson, who led the way with 20 points, including a driving layup that gave the Dolphins their first lead at 58-57 with 5:19 remaining. “Shane Williams did a good job picking our energy up. He’s our point guard and we follow his lead.”
Williams had 16 points, four assists and seven steals, Johnson scored 14 points (including four three-pointers) and George Brown added seven points and 16 rebounds. The teams traded baskets in the second quarter and Palisades trailed 33-22 at halftime.
The Dolphins opened the second half on fire, scoring the first seven points and cutting its deficit to 35-32 on a three-pointer by Johnson. The Dolphins pulled even at 44-44 but the Lobos went on a 6-0 run and carried a five-point lead to the fourth quarter.
Robinson’s three-pointer from the corner made it 66-60 Palisades with two minutes left.
Sophomore Ron Artest III, the son of former Los Angeles Lakers forward and current Pali High girls assistant coach Metta World Peace, had five points in his Dolphins debut, making a layup and hitting three foul shots.
“I wasn’t nervous at all,” Artest said. “Coach got on us about our defense because we had like 10 fouls in the first half.”
Palisades has the week off to prepare for the El Segundo Tournament where it opens Monday against Crossroads.
“We’re a good team and we need to play like it,” Anaya said.
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