LCC Girls Rout Host Beverly Hills in Tournament

The La Costa Canyon High girls basketball team improved its record to 9-1 with a 74-37 rout of Beverly Hills High School on Tuesday in a second-round game of the West Coast Holiday Festival Tournament hosted by BHHS and Burbank's Burroughs High School.

The Mavericks' 6-4 senior center Madisen Irwin made it tough for the Normans to go inside for shots, and when thet did get them off, not many of them fell and Irwin would grab the rebound. Beverly Hills does not have any players taller than 6 feet. 

The Normans (6-6) played without top scorer Mason Morgan, who injured her hamstring in an opening-night victory Monday.

La Costa Canyon was able to find creases in the Norman defense to get the ball inside. When the Mavericks missed, Irwin and Bridget Whitfield did a good job of getting the rebounds for second-chance opportunities. After the first quarter, the Mavericks led 18-10. 

It was more of the same in the second quarter, as Irwin teamed up with senior Jen Dumiak to carry the offensive load for the Mavericks. Each had 13 points at the half. The Normans tried a zone defense initially, and then went to a pressure defense to get their fast break going. It was not effective against the adept ball handling of point guard Dumiak.

"We were giving up too many points on the press (defense), so we gave up on that and went to the man," Normans coach John Braddell said. "We did a little better job with the man, but we were just outgunned."

The Normans were forced to move players around to make up for the loss of Morgan, who is averaging 21 points a game. 

"Everybody else had to step up and play a different position, and score more, and we just couldn't get it done," Braddell said. 

BHHS senior Chelsea Austin did all she could against a bigger and more aggressive squad, frequently attacking the basket. She scored 17 of the Normans' 21 points in the first half. LCC held a 35-21 advantage at halftime. 

The Normans mustered just six points in the third quarter as the Mavericks pushed their lead to 37 points. They held Austin scoreless after halftime, and she finished with 17 points. Irwin wound up with 19 points, and Dumiak scored a game-high 27.

Special to Carlsbad Patch and Encinitas Patch from Beverly Hills Patch

TOURNAMENT UPDATE: La Costa Canyon added a 68-48 victory over Ventura High on Wednesday to improve to 10-1.  Irwin had 25 points and 10 rebounds, Whitfield added 19 points and 11 rebounds, and Dumiak had 15 points.