Peninsula Boys JV Basketball Team Begins 2nd Half of Bay League Season at Morningside High School

The Peninsula Panthers traveled to Morningside HS Friday afternoon for a Bay League game against the Monarchs to kick off the 2nd half of the Bay League season. The Panthers had a rare day off from school and due to other activities they had not practiced since Wednesday afternoon. The Panthers got off of the bus and they were all moving slowly and very lethargic, there was a tremendous lack of energy from the team and they did not appear to mentally present for the task that was at hand. Most of the players had fallen asleep on the bus on the drive over to Morningside and this would be a precursor to what was to come in the game.

The game began and the Panthers appeared to be out of sorts and there defensive effort was purely lacking, they were slow to all loose balls, they were missing wide open lay-ups and their shot selection was short of what would be desired. The only bright spot on the floor for the Panthers was freshman Jack Engstrom who was almost unstoppable. Engstrom was driving to the basket, making jump shots and he single handedly kept the Panthers in the game. Engstrom scored 11 points in the quarter to help the Panthers to a 15-13 lead at the end of the quarter.

The 2nd quarter began and the Monarchs shooting touch which had been red hot in the 1st quarter cooled significantly and the Panthers began making their lay-ups and their shot selections began to get better. Instead of the Panthers settling for the open jump shot they all began driving to the basket and making the inside shots. The only problem that began to emerge was that two of the Panther big men, Engstrom and Blanco both picked up their 2nd fouls mid-way through the quarter forcing the Panthers to scramble to replace them. The Panthers were able to hold off the Monarchs and outscored them 17-8 to go into half-time with a 32-21 lead.

When the 3rd quarter began the Panthers were again listless on the defensive end and the Monarchs who had been cold shooting from the floor in the 2nd quarter began to heat up. The Monarchs used their superior size to muscle the ball inside and the Panthers quickly lost Engstrom and Blanco again due to fouls. The Panthers were playing absolutely no defense but they were matching the Monarchs basket for basket and as the quarter drew to a close the Panthers had maintained their 11 point lead but the signs were all out that unless the Panthers buckled down and began playing the way that they were capable of playing the 4 quarter could be a very painful one with the way the Monarchs were playing.

The 4th and final quarter began and almost immediately freshman Dominic Blanco the center for the Panthers picked up his 4th foul and shortly after that fellow freshman big Jack Engstrom was whistled with his 4th foul and both had to take a seat on the bench. The Panthers got great play from sophomore Aidan Kuykendall and junior Kevin Moore who both filled in admirally for Blanco and Engstrom. The Monarchs became extremely hot in the 4th quarter and with just 3 minutes left in the game they had cut the Panther lead to just 3 points. A time out was called and when the Panthers came out on the floor all one had to do was to look at Panther freshman Won’ya Singleton to know that he was about to take over. Singleton began taking the ball and attacking the basket with a vengeance. He went to the foul line a total of 4 times and hit all 8 of his free throws and he also added a 3 pointer from the dead corner to boost the Panther lead back up to double digits. As the Monarchs began to focus on Singleton he began to hit his open teammates who were able to convert the passes into easy lay-ups. The Panthers survived with a 74-59 victory over a very good Morningside team.

The Panthers are now 14-4 on the season with 4 league games remaining, next Tuesday they face Mira Costa at Peninsula HS and then next Friday they face Redondo Union HS at Peninsula as well. Both games will begin at 4:30 PM and the Panthers would deeply appreciate any and all fan support they can get. The Panthers are currently 6-0 in league and the next two games are going to be tough ones so any support they can get would be appreciated. The Panthers were led by freshman Won’ya Singleton with 23 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, fellow freshman Jack Engstrom added 18 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal, sophomore Kaz Ogawa chipped in with 8 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, and Junior Nick Frasso added 11 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 assists.