The562’s coverage of Lakewood Athletics is sponsored by J.P. Crawford, Class of 2013.
The562’s coverage of Millikan athletics in the 2022-23 school year is sponsored by Curtis Boyer.
The unpredictable Moore League boys’ basketball season took another big turn on Friday night as the Millikan Rams (8-13, 3-5) picked up a huge win over rivals Lakewood (9-12, 5-3), defeating the Lancers 77-69 to create a major logjam in the league standings.
Lakewood came in riding high after their overtime win at Long Beach Poly earlier in the week, but the shorthanded Lancers were dealt another tough blow when senior guard Macarhy Morris left the game due to injury. Lakewood is already without senior point guard Chris Willis, who again was unavailable for the Lancers.
Morris had a team-high 19 points, but scored just two in the second half before leaving with injury in the third quarter. Mason Pacheco scored 16 and Elijah Nelson added 15 for Lakewood.
But credit to the host Rams who took advantage of the opportunity and picked up a quality win in front of their home crowd. Jackson Cryst had 15 of his game-high 23 points in the second half, and got support from Donavan Desha’s 18 points as well as 14 from Elijah Attardo.
Cryst scored 11 in the fourth quarter alone, while Dylan Williams added some key three-pointers off the bench. The Rams trailed the entire first half but took their first lead, 51-50, with less than two minutes left in the third.
As the teams went back and forth in the final frame, the Rams were able to protect the lead down the stretch and snap their five-game losing streak against the Lancers.
The Rams will be back in action on Wednesday hosting Cabrillo while Lakewood hosts Wilson on Monday. Those two teams are in a three-way tie with Long Beach Poly for second place in the Moore League, and all three are now a full three games back of unbeaten Jordan.
*Stats and additional info courtesy Ron Antonette
