The Hawks boys’ basketball team hosted its Hart High School Thanksgiving tournament, and on Wednesday, the West Ranch Wildcats earned their first win of the season while the Hawks were defeated at home by Moorpark.
The Wildcats, who started the season with back-to-back losses to Camarillo and Crescenta Valley, bounced back and defeated the Vasquez Mustangs of Acton, 61-39.
“We started off very sluggish the first two games of the season with guys coming up from junior varsity and getting the season of varsity experience for the first time,” said West Ranch head coach Desmond Carter. “So, we were able to settle in this game and do some of the things we’ve been working on in practice. So, it was good to see. I was excited for my guys.”
West Ranch, which after the first quarter held a narrow 15-12 lead over Vasquez, had its offense pick up the tempo in the second half as the Wildcats outscored the Mustangs, 28-15.
In the fourth quarter, the Wildcats scored 17 points to the Mustangs’ four, and senior forward Connor Petersen led all West Ranch players in scoring with 22 points.
“He’s coming off injury and didn’t get as much practice before,” Carter said. “So, this was kind of his breakout game to start the season. He’s playing like the Connor I know. So, it was great to see. He was bringing physicality, playing smart and being a leader.”
Eight different Wildcats scored in the win with senior point guard Alessandro Matera dropping 15 points in the victory.
With the win, Carter is glad to finally get the first victory of the season under the team’s belt, and although West Ranch started the season with two losses, he believes the physicality was still there and that the shots just weren’t landing.
“Our defense was there in the first two games. What we were trying to get to offensively was there. It just we just couldn’t make shots,” he said. “It’s a miss or make league, right? In basketball, you make the shot or miss a shot. So, it came down to that we had some very low-scoring games, the first two games. We were a better offensive team than that. So, I think this game is helping us build some momentum and hopefully we can keep moving forward.”
As for Hart, the Hawks began the season with a win over Lancaster but lost to the Moorpark Musketeers, 75-65.
The Hawks had eight different players score in the loss with two in double figures.
Unfortunately for Hart, it was not enough for the team to get the win at home. Head coach Tom Kelly said that a win was possible, but Moorpark is a talented team.
“I think we missed a lot of shots around the paint, and then we didn’t do a good job on Moorpark’s Tyson Howarth,” he said. “We knew he and Logan Stotts were their two top guys and we wanted to make sure they didn’t get the ball, and we wanted pressured him too much and he got into the paint.”
With the loss, the Hawks fell to 1-1 in the season and will look to rebound at home tonight against the 4-1 Camarillo Scorpions.
Despite the tough matchup, Kelly believes the competition the team has faced so far this season is a positive in the long term as he likes the depth this season’s team has.
“I like our depth. Last year we didn’t have a lot of depth. This year, we have a lot of depth. We can play with multiple guys. I like our team. You know, it’s early.”
The Hawks tip off against Camarillo at 6 p.m. for third place in the tournament tonight.
As for West Ranch, the Wildcats play against the Grant Lancers of Van Nuys for fifth place in the tournament, with the game set to begin at 4:30 p.m.
