PORT ANGELES — The Peninsula basketball men hit eight 3-pointers and scored 52 points in the second half to blow open a close game against Edmonds, running away down the stretch for a 95-74 win.
Despite the lopsided final score, Saturday’s game was not easy for the Pirates as evidenced by a blood-splattered jersey sported by Pirates forward Sam Velez after he was cut under the eye.
Edmonds’ Pepe Hernandez gave the Pirates fits in the early part of the game and Peninsula only had a lead of 46-41 in the opening minutes of the second half.
But then the Pirates’ outside shooters got hot and Peninsula outscored the Tritons 49-33 to close the game out.
Trent Warren scored 16 points, all in the second half, and pulled down eight boards to help spark the Pirates’ offensive explosion, while Alax Baham hit four 3-pointers in the second stanza and ended up with 19 points.
Jalon McCullough led Peninsula with 22 points with three 3-pointers, doing much of his damage in the first half, while Cole Rabedeaux and Darrion Daniels each scored 12. The Pirates shot 12-for-23 on their 3-pointers, including 8-for-13 in the second half.
Coach Mitch Freeman said the team shot great in the second half (19-for-32 overall — 59.4 percent) and controlled the boards down the stretch. He was also happy that his team went to the line 23 times.
Hernandez was virtually the entire offense for the Tritons early as his game was using his strength and athleticism to drive the lane and draw fouls (He ended up going to the line 14 times.). He had 26 points in the first 27 minutes of the game, but the Pirates held him to just two points in the final 13 minutes of the game.
“Our emphasis going into the second half was to slow him down. He’s tough to slow down,” said coach Mitch Freeman. Freeman said he also emphasizes to his players not to get caught up with the officiating as Hernandez kept drawing fouls on his drives to the basket.
Freeman agreed that for such a wide margin of victory, the game seemed closer than the score.
“We needed every single body tonight,” Freeman said.
Underscoring his point of the physical nature of the game, Velez, who contributed five points and eight boards, was forced to leave the game with a bloodied jersey from a gash under his eye he got while going for a layup. Freeman said after the game that Velez was headed to the ER and likely would need stitches.
Rabedeaux, who hit three 3-pointers said the team started moving the ball better in the second half, opening up outside shooters.
“A lot of the credit goes to our ball movement,” Rabedeaux said. He said the team also talked at the half of somehow reeling in Hernandez.
“We talked at the half about containing him. It’s what we’re supposed to do and we did it,” he said.
The win leaves the Pirates all alone in first place in the NWAC North Division at 5-1 (14-4 overall). Peninsula next plays Whatcom at home at 7 p.m. Wednesday.
Peninsula 95, Edmonds 74
Edmonds 35 39 — 74
Peninsula 43 52 — 95
Edmonds (74) — Hernandez 28, Mendiola 12, Wetmore 12, Jones 7, Hassett 5, Powell 4, Morris 3, Hutt 2, Ezeokeke 1.
Peninsula (95) — McCullough 22, Baham 19, Warren 16, Rabedeaux 12, Daniels 12, Velez 5, Lo 5, Baker 4.
Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News Peninsula’s Darrion Daniels, left, approaches the lane as Edmond’s K.J. Hassett defends in the first half on Saturday evening in Port Angeles.
