Welcomeback,hoops!
A year after finishing 12-15 overall to miss out on the playoffs by a couple of games, Marysville showcased its newfound depth and defensive intensity by leading nearly from start to finish in an 86-64 victory over the Bulldogs at Lesta Joubert Gymnasium.
The Indians unofficially tipped off their season with a 64-56 exhibition victory at Bear River in a Sac-Joaquin Section Foundation Game on Monday, and displayed an aggressive style of play on both ends of the court while outscoring Gridley in all four quarters and seeing all five of their starters score in double figures.
Marysville’s trapping defense forced turnovers early in the game to help build the lead to as many as 14 in the first half and the Bulldogs had no answer for the Indians’ penetrating guards, who fought their way to the basket for points time and time again.
All in all, it was a great season opener, and reaffirmed Marysville coach Stan Easter’s high hopes for what his team can do this year.
“We missed the playoffs and we lost seven games by less than six points last year. We were so young, and we had all these juniors and sophomores who didn’t know how to finish games,” Easter said. “All of that is going to help them this year experience-wise because now when we get in a close game they won’t lose their composure. They’ve been there before, and that will help us so much.”
Tuesday night wasn’t all that close as Marysville took a 23-18 lead at the end of the first quar-
ter before taking a 43-32 advantage into halftime.
The Indians stretched the lead to 53-38 midway through the third period and opened up a 20-point lead early in the fourth.
A familiar name led the way for Marysville as senior Kaden Klein continually slashed his way to the rim while finishing with 19 points, three rebounds, three assists and three steals. Klein was second on the team with 12.3 points per game as a junior last year, and Easter feels his 6-foot guard is primed for a breakout season after dropping 25 points in the win over Bear River the night before.
“Kaden has taken a huge step up,” Easter said. “He worked on his game all summer and I told him with all of these guys playing football, this was his time to get better and take control of this team. He’s done that and ran with it, and he’s great for us being so aggressive.”
Two players new to the varsity level also shined for the Indians on Tuesday.
Junior Kevin Scheive, a 6-6 center, poured in a team-high 21 points, pulled down five rebounds and showed some touch by stepping out behind the arc to knock down a pair of 3-pointers, and sophomore guard Myron Hamilton chipped in with 16 points, three rebounds, three assists and three steals.
Rounding out the offensive leaders were two sen- iors in Cornell Greenwood and Leo Mendoza, who returned to the court from the gridiron after Marysville’s football team’s season ended 11 days earlier in the SacJoaquin Section Division V semifinals.
Greenwood scored 10 points to go with five assists and five steals, and Mendoza finished with 10 points and four rebounds.
“Last year, we needed Cornell to score and do everything and there was no way we would have won a game with him scoring 10 points. This year, we have options,” Easter said. “We have a really good, well-balanced team, and when we go to our bench, it’s not like going off a cliff like it’s been before.
“I think we have a chance to do some really good things this year and I’m looking forward to it. We’re just going to go out there and compete and play our tails off.”
While the Indians look like they’re on the upswing, the Bulldogs open the year with some questions after finishing 24-6 and winning the Northern Section Division IV championship last season.
Gone are three-year varsity starters Quinn Spring, Sam Cota and Angel Santana, and last year’s starting point guard, Trever Facey, has since transferred to Sutter.
As big as those shoes will be to fill, the biggest change came on the sidelines, as reigning AppealDemocrat All-Area and Northern Section Coach of the Year Nathan Link stepped down in the offseason.
Taking over for the Bulldogs is Chay Dake, a 1997 graduate of Gridley who returned to the program after serving as a junior varsity coach seven years ago.
“They’re a good bunch of kids first of all and they have great basketball minds, but we need to improve on getting game repetitions as far as passing and not being so timid,” Dake said. “I thought our intensity was lacking in the second half and Marysville is a tough, hard-nosed team that has been playing together for a few years now.
“We don’t want to be preseason champions, we want to be league champions and it takes moments like these when we lose to show us what we need to work on.”
Senior Ivan Pietz scored a game-high 24 points and junior Tyler Little, the Bulldogs’ lone returning starter, added 12 while battling through early foul trouble. Brayden Lezner finished with eight points to round out the leaders for Gridley.
Marysville also won the junior varsity game, 62-53, behind 18 points and five assists by Mac Harris. Kameron Klein had 13 points and 20 rebounds, and Blake Clavelle recorded a double-double with 10 points and 10 boards.
The Indians completed the program sweep with a 68-21 win in the freshman contest. Jagir Johal led the way with 17 points, eight steals, seven rebounds and seven assists, and Eddie Gomez added 14 points and 14 rebounds in the victory.
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