GORMAN TOURNEY: Depth carries Falcons to victory
Evan Roquemore had carried Foothill early in the season, averaging 25.8 points and leading the Falcons in scoring in each of their first five games.
Roquemore had an off game Thursday in the Bishop Gorman Holiday Classic, but it didn’t matter as Foothill showed off its depth in an 84-73 victory over Richwood (La.) at Gorman.
“Teams are going to start keying on Evan, and this is a team sport,” Foothill coach Kevin Soares said. “You can’t rely on one guy to win games for you. Tonight, other guys stepped up, and it was great.”
The Falcons had four players score in double figures, with sophomore Greg Cox and freshman Brannon Cressanto combining to hit 10 3-pointers and score 34 points.
Cox was 6-for-9 from 3-point range and finished with a team-high 20 points.
“Our two young guys, it’s just great for their confidence,” Soares said. “I’m glad they got the opportunity to get some good looks. They can shoot, that’s for sure.”
Cox hit five 3-pointers in the second half, including three in a 52-second span that gave the Falcons a 64-50 lead.
Foothill also got some help inside from 6-foot-6-inch junior Zac Ginter and 6-7 junior Augy French.
Ginter had 17 points and five rebounds, and French helped out in the first half with four rebounds and two blocked shots.
Roquemore added 15 points and five assists but shot 4-for-13.
The win over Richwood was the first of two games Thursday for the Falcons, who beat Tech 65-52 in a Southeast League game that night.
In all, the Falcons (7-0) will play seven games in a span of five days this week.
Spring Valley 68, Dixie (Utah) 63 — At Gorman, Gary Payton scored five of his 11 points in overtime to help the Grizzlies to the win.
Anthony Moore had a steal and hit two free throws with 3.1 seconds left in overtime to seal the victory.
The game was tied at 58 in the closing seconds of regulation when Dixie’s Mike Sharp picked up a loose ball and heaved a desperation shot from beyond half court.
The ball went through the basket, but the apparent game winner was waved off by the officials.
Corey Clement had 15 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and three steals for Spring Valley. Vince Johnson added 13 points for the Grizzlies.
Sharp led Dixie with 19 points and nine rebounds.
Faith Lutheran 70, Mount Miguel (Calif.) 57 — At Faith Lutheran, Brett Lubbe scored 33 points and pulled down 15 rebounds as the Crusaders overcame a 31-29 halftime deficit to rally past Mount Miguel.
Greg Thomas added 10 points for Faith Lutheran.
Desert Pines 71, Servite (Calif.) 62 — At Faith Lutheran, Dominique Lawrence scored 19 points, and the Jaguars outscored Servite 9-0 in overtime to pick up the win.
Chancellor Davis added 18 points, Najee McIver had 11 and Caleb Myles chipped in 10 for Desert Pines.
Bishop Gorman 87, Cathedral Prep (Pa.) 51 — At Gorman, Anson Winder had 24 points as the Gaels rolled to the opening-round win.
Taylor Spencer’s dunk capped a 17-4 Gorman run to open the game. But the play also marked the lone negative for Gorman.
Star sophomore swingman Shabazz Muhammad went down with an injured right hip on the play. He was helped off the floor with 10:28 to go in the first half and did not return.
Muhammad scored nine points during the opening run.
Ryan Parks had 17 points, and Johnathan Loyd added nine assists for Gorman.
Silverado 63, Layton Christian (Utah) 61 — At Gorman, Ruben Jackson scored 18 points to lead the Skyhawks to the narrow win.
Dwayne Marshall added 12 points and David Lutomski had 10 for Silverado.