Peter Samore
NORTH HOLLYWOOD -- All the St. Francis High boys' basketball team
needed was a little offensive boost. And the Golden Knights got it in the
middle of their Mission League game Wednesday night.
Though St. Francis trailed only in the first minute of its contest
against Harvard-Westlake, it cashed in the insurance in the game's final
minutes.
The Golden Knights ended the second quarter and began the third with
13 unanswered points en route to posting a 67-61 victory at
Harvard-Westlake.
Contributing eight of those points was Michael Jenkins, who led all
scorers with 27 points, 22 in the second half.
He closed the first half with a 35-foot buzzer-beater and opened the
second half with another three-pointer.
"Michael played within himself tonight," St. Francis Coach John Jordan
said. "He had a great shot selection and got a lot done for us.
"We're lucky to have him. He's a very important part of the team."
St. Francis (5-8, 2-2 in league) shot 25 of 62 (40.3%) from the field,
including 43.8% (seven of 15) from three-point range.
Harvard-Westlake (6-10, 0-3 in league) got off to a slow start. The
Wolverines made just 12 of 40 shots (30%) in the first half, though they
shot 36.7% from the field over the course of the game.
"We lost the game in the first half," Harvard-Westlake Coach Greg
Hilliard said. "We missed too many layups and our free-throw shooting
wasn't any better.
"Our guys had a run in the end, but it was on tired legs. We didn't
have enough in our tank."
The Wolverines, down by 11 midway through the fourth quarter, managed
to come within four of the Golden Knights. A three-pointer and a layup
from Austin Scott cut Harvard-Westlake's deficit to 58-54 with three
minutes left.
BOX SCORE
St. Francis 19 13 16 19 -- 67
Harvard-Westlake 15 12 12 22 -- 61
ST. FRANCIS -- Jenkins 27, Mitchell 14, Mason 10, Miller 9 and 9
rebounds, Sciarra 3, Davies 2, Gonzalez 2 and 7 rebounds.
* Three-pointers: Jenkins 3, Mason 2, Mitchell 2.
HARVARD-WESTLAKE -- Weinstein 18 and 8 rebounds, Coffey 12 and 9
rebounds, Scott 9, Chung 5, Matthies 5, Taylor 5, Weinberger 5, Gilman 2.
* Three-pointers: Scott, Weinberger, Weinstein.
