IRVINE – The starting lineup for the Irvine boys basketball team can be summarized as four guards and a golfer. But man, what a golfer.
Putting on a masterclass in ball movement and unselfishness, the Vaqueros won the Pacific Coast League’s battle of the unbeatens with a decisive 66-37 victory over Sage Hill behind Cooper Stearns and Co.
With their win on Friday, the Vaqueros looked every bit of their No. 17 standing in the Orange County Top 25 rankings – and then some.
They blocked out. They found the open man. They made crisp passes and worked the ball like they were in a different league. They looked wonderfully awesome as they try to win their first league title since 1991 – when their coach, Harry Meussner, was a year old.
“Everything tonight was a step above because we rose to the occasion,” said Meussner, who is in his fourth season as head coach and has guided the program to a 22-2 record, including 6-0 in league play. “Sage Hill is a very good team. It was a big win for us in the score column, but it was because of the effort, intensity, focus, and the ball movement. Everything was a step above.
“I’m not saying we aren’t capable of that, or we don’t do that typically, but I think we were really honed in on what we needed to do today.”
“We had a great practices this week, locked in to this matchup,” he added. “The boys executed the game plan. I didn’t have to call timeout until the fourth quarter because they were playing so great. They were coaches on the floor. They knew what they had to do.”
With eight teams in the league, each plays the other once, and is then seeded into a three-round tournament. This game was essentially for the No. 1 seed.
Irvine is on a 15-game winning streak after its joint collective effort.
“We have talented shooters but this was an on night for us,” Meussner said. “I though we were loose and prepared coming into the game, and I think that helped our shooters shine.”
Irvine was 11 of 20 shooting in the first half, and 8 of 15 in the third quarter. They were 10 of 21 from the 3-point arc.
Stearns scored 26 points, including 13 in the third quarter as the Vaqueros opened their 30-10 halftime lead to 51-25 despite Sage Hill starting to find its footing.
It was a great performance by Stearns, a 6-foot-5 center headed to Stanford on a golf scholarship.
“I’m better at golf, but I enjoy the team aspect and physicality of basketball so much,” Stearns said. “I could have just played golf, but I’ve played basketball since I was 5. … I couldn’t go without playing basketball in high school, it’s just who I am.”
He and his teammates are reaping the fruits of their commitment.
“I wanted to change the culture here, change the identity of Irvine High School,” he continued. “Ever since I was a freshman, I’ve come to school saying I wanted to make a lasting impact, and this game was a huge step toward trying to get that league title.”
Stearns did a fantastic job in the paint, and he also played tough defense against Sage Hill’s 6-10 center Jackson Cryst, a force unlike any other in the PCL. A volleyball player who has committed to Long Beach State, Cryst was held in check by Stearns and Evan Terakawa, and was limited to eight points.
Irvine knocked down three 3-point baskets – one by Jalen Yim, two by sophomore Holden Stearns, Cooper’s brother – as the Vaqueros took a 14-6 lead into the second quarter. A couple more 3-pointers added to the margin but continued to extend the defense, creating the opportunity for Cooper Stearns’13-point third quarter that made it 51-25.
Back-to-back 3-pointers by Yim and Taewon Kim opened the second quarter to make it 20-6. Leading 20-10, a run of five consecutive baskets on five possessions delivered a death blow to Sage Hill’s hopes.
Holden Stearns scored 12 of his 18 points in the first half and finished with four 3-pointers. Yim scored 9 on three 3s. Kim added a couple and finished with 9 points.
Tre Cradle led Sage Hill with 11 points.
Lightning coach DCean Bryant said the game was an eye-opener for his players, “the realization that we have to be locked in from the beginning to the end.”
They got a first-hand look of what it looks like when that happens.
