La Habra boys basketball team starts fast and defeats Orange 60-31; improves overall mark to 17-2

Cameron Dashiell of La Habra gets ready to pass the ball during Thursday’s non-league game against Orange.

La Habra’s boys basketball team, fresh off an Orange Holiday Classic title, kept rolling Thursday night, defeating Orange 60-31 in a nonleague game at La Habra.

To see the slide show, please click on the first photo

La Habra coach Aaron Riekenberg greets Christian Salazar as he comes off the court Thursday night.

La Habra players warm up before the start of the second half Thursday night.

La Habra players including Sam Howling (No. 33) and Isaac Gomez head back to the bench before the start of the second half.

The Highlanders (17-2 overall) were led by 6-8 senior Sam Howlin, who had 13 points and senior guard Cameron Dashiell, who had 10 points. Christian Salazar, a 6-3 senior, added nine points and Ja’len Overstreet, a 5-10 senior, had eight points for the Highlanders, who won their ninth in a row.

La Habra took control early jumping out to a 21-7 lead after the first quarter and a 33-15 advantage at halftime.

“I thought Dashiell came out with some great energy,” said La Habra Coach Aaron Riekenberg. “We had a little bit of a little bit of a sluggish start from some of our other guys but he kind of got guys going and played well, distributing the ball and running the floor.

“Their big (Zack Porter) can really play and he did a good job with helping slow Howlin down a little bit but he still found ways. He’s (Howlin) a great player. He’s gotten so much better and I’m really proud of him.”

Porter led Orange (5-14) with 12 points. Jonathan Dominguez had nine points and Malik Jacobs scored eight points for the Panthers.

La Habra (2-0 in the Freeway League) resumes league play next week, playing at Troy Tuesday night and hosting Sonora on Friday, Jan. 11.

“I’m really proud of the boys, but our league is a grind,” Riekenberg said. “Troy is playing great basketball and Sonora is really tough, so we will see what happens. But we’re up for it, we’re excited.”

LA HABRA WINS THE ORANGE HOLIDAY CLASSIC TITLE

-Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone; timburt@ocsportszone.com