Centurions complete back-to-back double-digit league wins; plus, scores from around the Foothill League
The Centurions only held the lead twice in Friday’s night game against the Canyon Cowboys: Once in the opening minutes of the game and the second time coming in the fourth quarter, as the Cowboys led the Centurions through most of the game at Saugus High School.
But when it mattered most, the Centurions’ defense shut down Canyon’s offense in the fourth quarter as Saugus outscored the Cowboys, 24-9, to win, 64-50, in come-from-behind fashion.
“Everything we talked about is defense, so we had to get stops,” Saugus head coach Alfredo Manzano said. “And then those stops fueled our offense, and with that zone matchup that they’re playing, you know, we had, get the ball middle and work off of that.”
Centurion (4-1, 2-0) senior forward Braydon Harmon was a key piece in the comeback as he recorded a double-double with 23 points and 15 rebounds.
After the game, Manzano added Harmon’s game is more than just his ability to be a leader on offense but on defense, too, as the comeback wouldn’t have happened without him executing on his assignments.
“I love the job he did on defense. He played Isaac Yuhico really well,” he said. “I’m super happy that he was able to defend him and stay out of foul trouble.”
Heading into Friday’s night matchup, the Cowboys’ (8-4, 0-2) Isaac Yuhico was fresh off a 30-point-plus performance against the Hart Hawks and was limited to just 21 points along with four rebounds and three assists.
Throughout the game, Yuhico and Alex Lazo led the Cowboys’ offense.
Lazo was second in scoring for Canyon with 15 points, all from beyond the arc.
“Anytime we play Canyon, it’s a dog fight,” Manzano said. “They’re well-coached. And they gave us everything. I mean, we couldn’t put the ball in the hoop in the first half. They were switching up the defenses and stuff like that. But credit to our boys — they got down double digits, they stayed engaged and they kept fighting hard.”
With the win, the Centurions are now 2-0 in the Foothill League, with big wins over Canyon and Castaic.
Manzano said after the win that his team is going to ride the momentum onto Tuesday’s matchup against the Vikings at Valencia High School as the game will prove to be an early-season title clash.
“Valencia is Valencia, they’re really good, so we’ll be underdogs,” he said. “We’re just going to go out there and scrap and hopefully the guys just play free. We never know what could happen.”
As for Canyon, the defeat drops the Cowboys to 0-2 in league play with both losses coming on the road.
The Cowboys will look to bounce back at home, hosting the West Ranch Wildcats with the game set to tip off at 6:30 p.m.
After Friday’s night games, here are scores from around the Foothill League:
West Ranch 79, Castaic 59: The Wildcats (2-4, 1-1) bounced back from a league-opening loss to Golden Valley with a win on the road against Castaic (3-4, 0-2).
The Wildcats outscored the Coyotes 18-6 in the second quarter and held Castaic at bay all throughout the game for a double-digit victory.
West Ranch plays the Cowboys at Canyon High School on Tuesday as the Coyotes match up against the Golden Valley Grizzlies.
Valencia 79, Hart 60: The Vikings (7-2, 1-0) opened Foothill League action with a win over the Hart Hawks (2-3, 1-1) at home.
Valencia’s Noah Trevino led all Vikings in scoring with 20 points with Ali Eldein coming in second with 15 points.
The Vikings host the Saugus Centurions at home on Tuesday, and the Hawks pick up Foothill League play on Friday at home hosting Golden Valley.
Photo gallery from Saugus boys’ basketball win over Canyon:
