The Mountain View Bruins of Orem, Utah traveled more than 800 miles to defeat the Paly boys’ basketball team in its home opener on Thursday night, 49-63.
The Bruins used their height to their advantage as they dominated in the paint throughout the game, while the Vikings could not get their offense going.
“Their [the Bruins’] superfluous height played a key role in their plan and was a major factor in their success against us,” junior point guard Brendon Rider said.
The Vikings came out with a small three-guard lineup, which played into Mountain View’s game plan as they jumped out to a quick lead with easy layups off backdoor cuts and offensive rebounds.
“We had big men on the bench but some of them had just come from football and hadn’t been fully integrated into the system,” head coach Andrew Slayton said.
While the Bruin’s offense was rolling, the Paly offense looked stagnant, as it could not find a rhythm, shooting only 39 percent from the field.
“Our shooting was horrendous,” Rider said. “We just had a tough time coping with their [Mountain View’s] height advantage.”
The Viking tried to rely on the three-point shot and had mild success, shooting eight for 18 behind the three-point line. Sophomore Max Schmarzo led the team in scoring with 12 points and was four for seven from long range.
“I didn’t shoot as well as I thought I could,” Schmarzo said. “I wasn’t really feeling it tonight.”
Despite the occasional three, Paly could not keep up with Mountain View’s low post assault and went into halftime trailing, 22-36. The second half was more of the same, as the Bruins did not miss a beat in continuing their offensive success.
“We just were not stopping them [Mountain View],” junior forward Adrian Augmon said. “They were pretty tall and they knew how to run their offense.”
The Viking’s offensive woes continued in the second half, as Paly often could not find an open shot and had to force contested shots.
“I was a little disappointed with our offense, especially with the group we had in there,” Slayton said. “I expected more because of the nice job we did in the James Lick Tournament and I wanted to continue that success.”
As the Bruins extended their lead in the fourth quarter, Paly emptied its bench with five minutes left and the reserves finished out the game, bringing the final score to 49-63.
The Vikings, despite the loss, were not too disappointed and still look forward to a successful season.
“We’re not too worried about this loss,” Augmon said. “We still have a lot of pre-season games to get ready for league.”
The Vikings won Saturday night, 55-50, against Riordan, a tough West Catholic League opponent. Key shooting by Max Schmarzo and shutdown defense by senior point guard Nick Robinson led the Viking’s to victory. Paly will play next in the Rocklin Tournament from Dec. 18-20.