Imperial Tigers open playoffs with win
IMPERIAL — After a few seasons of missing the playoffs, the Imperial High boys’ basketball team returned to postseason play against Escondido Charter here on Wednesday night.
The host Tigers eventually opened the CIF-San Diego Section Division IV playoffs with a solid 68-48 victory over Escondido to advance to Saturday’s quarterfinal contest, where they’ll face either O’Farrell Charter or Hilltop.
Imperial went into the contest as the No. 5 seed and this season’s Desert League champions to Escondido’s No. 12 ranking.
The Tigers proved to be the higher seed not only on paper, but on the court as well after they opened the game with a 13-0 run that was eventually halted by an Escondido timeout.
Imperial’s opening performance was highlighted by the efforts of senior starters Sonny Escalante and Tony Moreno, who finished as the Tigers’ leading scorers.
Escondido’s timeout did little to stall Imperial as they finished the first period with an 18-9 advantage.
The Tigers did not let up in the second quarter as Escalante opened the period with a 3-pointer to put Imperial ahead 21-9.
Escalante continued to lead Imperial in the second, and he was joined by the efforts of Julio Chavez to put the Tigers up 35-20 at the half.
The large margin would eventually help the Tigers in the third quarter, as they struggled to find the bottom of the net, while Escondido found a groove in the early minutes of the period.
The Tigers carried the closing momentum of the third quarter into the fourth, helping them retain their 20-point lead through the remainder of the game.
Imperial had four players finish with double figures, led Escalante with 18 points, Moreno with 15 points, Reed with 13 points and Chavez with 11.
The Tigers’ quarterfinal opponent and game location were not available at press time.