Avalon boys basketball team attempt to capture third straight win falls short
By Steve Hall
The Avalon Boys Varsity basketball team came up short in their attempt at a “three peat” in the Annual Catalina Classic. In the end, they came in second place.
The Lancers came out strong in game one against longtime rival Wildwood and came away with a 74-65 victory behind the outstanding play of Gabe Hernandez and Edgar Alvarez.
Avalon boys basketball team attempt to capture third straight win falls short
By Steve Hall
The Avalon Boys Varsity basketball team came up short in their attempt at a “three peat” in the Annual Catalina Classic. In the end, they came in second place.
The Lancers came out strong in game one against longtime rival Wildwood and came away with a 74-65 victory behind the outstanding play of Gabe Hernandez and Edgar Alvarez.
Hernandez had 25 points and 16 rebounds while Alvarez contributed 21 points and 8 rebounds to the cause.
In game two of the tournament Avalon faced Pacific Ridge and came away with another victory behind the excellent play once again of Gabe Hernandez with 19 points and 8 rebounds and Edgar Alvarez with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Sophomore Danny Jimenez provided the spark in the 4th quarter of this game and finished with 13 points and 5 rebounds.
In game three of the tournament Avalon faced Trinity Academy and came out on fire.
However in the 2nd quarter the Knights began to apply full court pressure and the Lancers never could figure out how to handle it.
They lost the game 53-34 but more importantly began to lose their confidence and appeared shaken for the first time this season.
Avalon faced Trinity again in the championship game of the tournament later on in the day but this time the game was much closer and much more exciting.
Unfortunately the Lancers came up on the short end of the 62-60 score. Gabe Hernandez played great basketball throughout the tournament and came away with an All-Tournament medal.
Daniel Paradisi continued to show his improvement and is becoming a force on both the offensive and defensive boards. Although Avalon didn’t win the tournament they came away with the 2nd Place Trophy and represented their school and their community in fine fashion.
They are an exciting team, learning how to play together and improving with each game.
Subhead: Lancers Lose to defending champions
The Avalon Boys Varsity basketball team traveled to Encino California on Wednesday, Jan. 2, to face their longtime rival Holy Martyrs.
This game had even more significance than usual since the Armens are proud owners of a recently earned C.I.F. Championship ring.
However, Avalon was not intimidated as they came out and fought hard, only to come up short by a score of 56-51 in the end.
Edgar Alvarez, Gabe Hernandez, and Danny Jimenez all did their best but again had troubles with defensive pressure. Junior David Castro provided the defensive tenacity for the Lancers hustling all over the court.
Once the Lancers solve their turnover problems by learning not to panic under extreme defensive pressure they will be a force to contend with. The effort, skill and potential for success are all there.
Lancers on a Roll
The Avalon Boys basketball team opened up league play this past week and the Lancers have started out on the right track by winning their first 3 games, two against Orangewood Academy and one against Eastside Christian.
In game 1 against Orangewood the Lancers were led by point guard Edgar Alvarez who scored 20 points, garnered 7 steals, grabbed 6 rebounds and dished out 5 assists. Gabe Hernandez also contributed 15 points and 8 rebounds to the cause while Daniel Paradisi was a huge force inside grabbing 10 rebounds and getting 4 steals. This was a closely fought game until the 4th quarter when Avalon finally took control and outscored Orangewood 20-10.
The Lancers came away with a 44-41 victory but could not rest on their laurels as they had to return the following morning to face the Spartans once again.
In game two, Avalon was led by the inspirational play of senior center Daniel Paradisi.
Paradisi has been on a steady path of improvement this season but he outright dominated this game, scoring 12 points, grabbing 10 rebounds and once again taking a critical charge to get the Lancers going.
Gabe Hernandez and Edgar Alvarez were steady as usual scoring 11 and 9 points respectively.
Isaac Rios and Danny Jimenez each added 9 points to the cause as well.
This was a total team effort and Avalon came out on top by a final score of 50-38.
The defense was stifling, holding the Spartans to 38 points behind 5 steals from Alvarez.
The Lancers are playing good basketball at just the right time.
On Saturday, Jan. 4, Avalon faced Eastside Christian and came out on fire behind the offensive punch of Edgar Alvarez (8 points), Isaac Rios (6 points), Gabe Hernandez (5 points) and Daniel Paradisi (4 points).
The Lancers exploded out of the gate with 23 first quarter points and took charge of the game.
Daniel Paradisi also had three blocked shots in the quarter to get the crowd and his team really cranking on all cylinders.
The Lancers slowed the pace a little the rest of the way but still maintained control and came away with a 58-41 victory. Isaac Rios was another star in this one as he made four three pointers from deep and really kept the crowd into the game.
Gabe Hernandez and Edgar Alvarez did their part as usual scoring 18 and 17 points respectively.
Alvarez played perhaps his best game of the season as he also dished out 7 assists and got 5 steals. The Lancers now stand at 3-0 in league play and 9-6 overall. Their next opponent is Capistrano Valley Christian on the road on Friday, Jan. 11.
They then return home to play Saddleback Valley Christian the next day on Jan 12th at 2:30 p.m. Come on up and support your local Avalon hoopsters.
Steve Hall is the Avalon Lancers’ basketball coach.
