PLACENTIA — The Kennedy boys basketball team erased a 14-point deficit in the fourth quarter to pull off a stunning 69-63 win over Valencia on Thursday night at Valencia High.
By winning the Fighting Irish (16-8, 4-2) remained tied for first place in the Empire League with Calvary Chapel. They have league games left against Fullerton and Calvary Chapel.
Kennedy coach Jose Alvarez saw an opportunity for a comeback because of the Tigers’ fast pace of play.
“I figured that they were actually gonna give us a chance,” Alvarez said, “because either their shot is going in or they’re gonna miss, and they like to shoot quick. So a team like that is going to give you an opportunity to come back. And I said, ‘we’re going to change the defenses up and see what happens.’ ”
Kennedy outscored Valencia 25-5 in the final eight minutes.
Kennedy’s Gavin DeGuzman scored a team-high 21 points and made four 3-pointers. Kai Wilson added 17 points and two blocks, and Jacob Stewart came off the bench to score eight of his nine points in the pivotal fourth quarter.
Valencia (12-13, 2-3) defeated Kennedy 49-45 in their first meeting this season.
“Basically the tables were turned,” Alvarez said. “We had them the first time at our place, and we were up by 10, and they started to press the heck out of us. And then we just kind of returned the favor.”
Valencia coach Danny Ortega credited Kennedy with bringing the energy on both ends of the floor in the final quarter.
“You saw the momentum just completely switch and their guys made plays,” Ortega said. “Our guys unfortunately did not step up in this one.”
“Their pressure got to us,” he continued. “Having younger guys and not being in those kinds of moments really hurt us, and that we turned the ball over way too much. I think in the fourth quarter alone, we had four turnovers and that crucial four-minute stretch. After that, our offense got stagnant and we settled for shots.”
Wilson scored eight points in the final quarter for the Fighting Irish, and Alvarez praised the defensive effort by Alonzo Alvarez in the fourth.
Valencia’s David Jung scored a game-high 22 points. Izan Hsu had 13 points for the Tigers and Noah Orozco added 11 points.
Ortega said his team let an important game slip away Thursday, but he has confidence that the youthful group can bounce back in their final three league games.
“We have two out of the three at home,” Ortega said. “We’re hoping that we’re able to capitalize and get our energy back up against Calvary Chapel and then we go to Tustin and then we finish here against Fullerton.
“So I’m hoping that we’re able to see some results, you know, some positive results in regards to attitude and these guys bouncing back from a tough loss.”
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