Boys basketball: Estancia still tinkering

Barry Faulkner

IRVINE - It took a halftime adjustment to get the Estancia High

boys basketball team back into Wednesday’s nonleague contest at Irvine

High.

But adjustments are nothing new to first-year Estancia Coach Chris

Sorce, who has had to tinker with personnel all preseason.

Irvine (5-1) took advantage of the Eagles’ lack of stability to claim

a 56-47 victory.

“It’s growing pains,” said Sorce, who started sophomore point guard

Matt Cachola for the first time, was without senior starter Cesar Romero

(illness) and brought junior standout Micah Young off the bench against

the Vaqueros.

Cachola, making his varsity debut, missed the first four games with a

pulled groin.

The strategic adjustment, utilizing senior Kenny Valbuena at the high

post against an Irvine defense which kept center David Cox in the key,

helped Estancia turn a 24-21 halftime deficit into a 37-35 lead, heading

into the final period.

Valbuena had seven of his 11 points during the quarter, while twin

brother Danny Valbuena had five of his seven rebounds during the period.

Eliasar Maldonado had 11 of his game-high 20 points in the second

quarter to keep the Eagles close, while Young had 11 of his 14 after

intermission.

Young, whose putback (the fourth Estancia shot of the possession) put

Estancia ahead for the first time with 5:27 left in the third quarter,

scored on a layin with 3:23 left to give the visitors a 42-39 edge.

But Irvine scored the next 12 points to drop the Eagles to 2-3.

“We haven’t had a game that close in the fourth quarter, so,

hopefully, our kids will learn from this,” Sorce said.

Maldonado drilled four three-pointers, including a 25-footer to pull

Estancia within 51-47 with 30 seconds left.

“It was a closer game than the final score shows,” Sorce said.

Cox led Irvine with 14 points.

NONLEAGUE

Irvine 56, Estancia 47

Score by Quarters

Estancia 5 16 16 10 - 47

Irvine 14 10 11 21 - 56

Estancia - Maldonado 20, Young 14, K. Valbuena 11, Stoddard 2, D.

Valbuena 0, Cachola 0, Rodriguez 0.

3-pt. goals - Maldonado 4.

Fouled out - None.

Technicals - None.

Irvine - Cox 14, Naderi 13, Carter 10, Guinn 8, Sarwine 4, Pollard 2,

Johnson 2, Kuruvilla 2, Tahvildaran 1.

3-pt. goals - Naderi 3.

Fouled out - None.

Technicals - None.