The562’s coverage of Long Beach Wilson Athletics is sponsored by Joel Bitonio, Class of 2009.
The562’s coverage of Jordan Athletics is sponsored by John Ross, Class of 2013.
Wilson sophomore Paige Williams wanted to make sure she made up for her slow start on Friday night against Jordan in a Moore League girls’ basketball battle with playoff seeding implications.
Williams did just that, scoring 11 of her 19 points in the fourth quarter as Wilson was able to mount a comeback and take the lead for good in a 52-47 win over the visiting Panthers.
“I started off really slow,” Williams said. “I was really out of it and at halftime I just tried to get back into it. It’s Senior Night and I wanted to get a win for my seniors.”
After a sluggish start from both teams in the first half, Jordan went on a 6-2 run in the second quarter to take a 19-17 lead at halftime.
The Panthers leaned on their size and went to Savannah Hernandez and Breana Patu often to try and get Wilson out of rhythm on both sides of the court.
“I thought this was a great experience for our team,” Jordan coach Wesley Rosenbaum said. “For a lot of them it was the biggest game for them in their young career and we came to play – we came to fight. We just didn’t make enough big plays in the end to win it. You got to give a lot of credit to their team. They made some big shots and in order to win a big game you got to be able to win some big shots like that.”
Both teams came out flying in the third quarter, as Wilson’s Laurin Tiangco scored the first bucket to tie the game 19-19.
Asia Edwards went to work as she scored 8 of her 14 points in the third quarter to give Jordan 27-21 lead at the midway point.
But, for every run Jordan had, Wilson had a response as senior Peightyn Myers and Wiliiams scored 14 points combined. The Bruins went on a 14-8 run to tie the game 35-35 heading to the fourth.
Laurin Tiangco started the quarter with a steal and dished it to Williams who scored. It was her first of a trio of three-point baskets as the Bruins were able to pull away in the final eight minutes.
“She’s my only 4-year varsity player and she showed it tonight," Wilson coach Erin Carey said. "Leadership, controlling the tempo, knowing when to pressure and when to pull up.”
Wilson secured the Moore League’s third playoff seed and Jordan will look to secure fourth place when they take on Millikan next week.
