Mission Bay went 1-1 this past week, falling to their league rivals, Cathedral Catholic, before picking up a win against the Lincoln Hornets. The week’s split moved their record to 15-9 overall and 2-3 in Western League play.
Against Cathedral, the Bucs’ loss can be attributed to a slow start both offensively and defensively in the first quarter. Despite being down two starters, the Dons came out firing, connecting on five first-quarter three-pointers.
As such, they jumped out to a commanding 23-9 lead over the Bucs. “We came out lethargic and slow defending their shooters,” said Mission Bay coach Marshawn Cherry. “They were missing two of their starters, and we came out flat, and it allowed them to get open looks. We were slow in our rotation, and it allowed them to start fast.”
The early 14-point hole forced the Bucs to play with extra urgency. In the second quarter, the Bucs showed signs of life as Atreju Delacruz, Isaah Whitehurst, and Charlie Hutchinson found some success driving the rim, making it a 30-21 game at the half.
Ultimately, the Bucs would slowly chip away at the Don’s lead due largely to their defense. In the second half, Mission Bay would hold Cathedral to 29 points. “One thing about us is that we are always going to fight,” Cherry said. “Even when we are down, we have a chance to push back due to our defensive play when we lock-in.”
While the defense was able to lock in, the Bucs offense was never able to follow suit on the other end of the floor. It was an uncharacteristic offensive showing from the Bucs, as they had one of their worst shooting nights of the season, going 1-21 from the three-point line.
The poor shooting would prevent the comeback effort from coming together, as they would fall 59-56 to the Dons. “We feel that we should have won that game. Even if we just make a couple more threes, we win that game,” said Cherry.
Mission Bay would have a quick turnaround for their next game vs. Lincoln. Just 24 hours after their loss to Cathedral, they would return to the hardwood to take on the Hornets for what felt like a must-win game
The Bucs’ play against Lincoln had the look and feel of a team who was playing hyper-focused, as they routed the Hornets 80-54.
Mission Bay’s offense was led by its underclassmen pair, Caleb Newton and Clay Grebing. Newton was comfortable with his shot early, scoring in the double digits and finding success from both the paint and outside the arc.
“Caleb is starting to get comfortable in the offense and figuring out the spots he can score from,” Cherry said. “He’s a very athletic player, and he came out and got good shots, played within the offense, and got to the rim and finished. He’s capable of going for 30 points any night.”
Grebing, the 6 feet 7 inches tall sophomore, got hot from beyond the arc dropping 18 points in the victory. All of Grebing’s 18 points came off six three-pointers. “Clay had a great game; he shot with confidence and was a weapon from deep,” Cherry said.
Another noticeable improvement was Mission Bay’s ball movement. The Bucs played an unselfish brand of basketball, often using an extra pass to find a higher-quality shot both in their transition and base offenses.
“The night before, we did move the ball well; we took the first available shot, which was not always the best shot. So before the game in shoot around, we hammered home to the guys that we wanted to take the best shot and find that open guy and make the extra pass,” Cherry said. “When we do that, we make way more shots and are more efficient on offense as a whole.
With their record now at 15-9, Mission Bay returned to action this week, playing two League games with Madison on Jan 30, and San Diego on Feb 2.
