Valencia evens record with victory over Segerstrom at Santa Ana Varsity Tournament

Valencia’s Dillon Joo is guarded by Segerstrom’s Ricky Carballea (No. 0) and Gilbert Vargas Wednesday. (Photos: Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone).

Valencia High School’s boys basketball team put together a big run at the start of the third quarter and went on to defeat Segerstrom 47-42 Wednesday night in a second round consolation game at the Santa Ana Varsity Tournament at Santa Ana.

Segerstrom (0-2) led 23-20 at halftime before Valencia (1-1) went on a 9-0 run in the third quarter to move ahead 29-23.

The game was tied 32-32 going into the final quarter.

Valencia moved ahead by five in the fourth quarter before Segerstrom cut the lead to 45-42 on a 3-pointer by Issac Camerana with 28 seconds remaining. But the Tigers were able to convert two free throws late and held off the Jaguars attempt to comeback.

“It feels good, our kids work hard and it’s nice to see them be rewarded for their efforts,” said Valencia Coach Danny Ortega. “We started off very strong in the first quarter, the pressure got to them a little bit but in the second quarter we had a little bit of a drop off and let their shooters get open.

“In the second half, we came out a little bit tougher and the guys made the commitment and said, to d up man-to-man and it paid off. They (his players) did a good job of stopping their penetration. We did enough to be able to win the game.”

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Valencia was led by Tyler Manalo, who had 15 points and Aidan Tom, who had eight points.

Gilbert Vargas had 12 points and Camarena (three, 3-pointers) and Jerell Guidry scored nine points each to lead Segerstrom.

“Valencia plays really hard, credit to them,” said Segerstrom Coach Eddie Andrade. “They have a great style and they just outworked us. Their pressure caught us early and had to play being down most of the game. We were able to kind of climb out of the hole but just never built a lead. It just felt like they were more physical than us and a bit more aggressive than us, so it kind of cost us.”

Andrade was pleased with the play of Guidry, a junior center-forward.

“Jerell has been kind of a shining light this year,” Andrade said. “We’re expecting big things from us. He played really physical which is a great thing for him.”

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