Peninsula Boys JV Basketball Kicks Off 2015-2016 Season

The 2015-2016 edition of the Peninsula Boys JV Team is one that is seldom seen, the team only has one returning player from last year’s team and the team is very young and inexperienced. They make up for the lack of JV experience with tremendous heart and determination and a willingness to never back down from an opponent. The team is not a very big team and there are only 3 players taller than the 6-00 height. On Monday evening, the Panthers began the season with a first round match-up in the Trevor Ariza Holiday Tournament against San Pedro High School. San Pedro is very similar to Peninsula this year in that their team is also very young with very little experience on the club.

The two teams walked out onto the court and the match-up appeared to be quite even. The ball went up and the game began and Peninsula wasted no time in setting the tone for the remainder of the game. The Panthers came out and established a very intense defense that worked hard at disrupting everything that San Pedro was trying to do. The Panthers raced out to a 15-4 lead mid-way through the first quarter and the Panthers were using a quick press to create numerous scoring opportunities that the Panthers were taking advantage of. The first quarter ended with the Panthers leading the Pirates 24-12.

The second quarter began with the Panthers picking up right where they had left off and they were able to increase their pressure on the defensive end of the court and they managed to hold the Pirates to only 9 second quarter points. The Panthers found their offensive grove and they scored a total of 26 points in the quarter giving Peninsula the halftime lead of 50-21. The Panthers were receiving contributions from everyone that entered the game and they were using a well balanced approach of inside and out to attack the Pirates.

The third quarter began and the Panthers came out of the half-time break truly committed to playing more intense team defense. They began to shut down the interior and limited the Pirates to only one shot attempt if they even were able to get the shot off. The Panthers outscored the Pirates in the third quarter 16-3 and led by a score of 66-23 at the con.

The Panthers emptied the bench for the fourth quarter and they maintained their defensive intensity and they were able to out-score the Pirates 11-9 in the quarter and ended the game with the score 77-33. The Panthers had contributions from all 12 players that entered the game. The Panthers were led by freshman Wony’a Singleton who scored 23 points, 1 rebound, 2 assists and 1 steal. Singleton received some help from Jack Engstrom who finished with 13 points,  7 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocked shots and from Dominic Blanco who finished with 13 points, 11 rebounds, 2 steals and an assist. The Panthers now face the winner of the Westchester vs. Lawndale game that took place at the conclusion of the Panthers game. The game is scheduled for Wednesday 11-25-15 at 6:15 PM at Westchester High School.