OAKLAND – Bishop O’Dowd put on a show for its fans in the Dragons’ home opener, using an explosive third quarter to build on a modest first half lead en route to a 75-57 victory over Alameda. Marsalis Roberson led the way with 20 points, including 11 in that decisive third period, Ryzon Norris added 14 points, and Monty Bowser chipped in 10 for Bishop O’Dowd. Jason Cibull paced Alameda with 13 points, although more than half came in a fourth quarter, the duration of which the Dragon starters rested.
“They wore down,” Bishop O’Dowd coach Lou Richie said of Alameda. “In the first half I played everybody, hard to get continuity. But we got the outcome.”
Of course many eyes were on 6-foot-9 freshman Jalen Lewis, who, as Harold Abend noted, impressed in his first game at Saturday’s NorCal Tip-Off Classic. Lewis finished with only six points but contributed on the boards and defensively and had a nice assist. He’s already received offers from Cal and UC Davis, with many more to come.
Bowser, himself headed to Cal, started off the game with two thunderous alley-oop dunks, and with the game tied at six O’Dowd (2-0) went on the first of several key runs to put distance from their opponent. The Dragons led 18-11 after one, yet despite a 9-0 push early in the second couldn’t quite get the lead to double figures at halftime.
In the first two periods, the teams combined for just two three-pointers and six free throws. That trend remained the same the rest of the game. O’Dowd went on an 8-0 run to make it 42-27, then closed the quarter with a 16-0 run. On play after play, the Dragons defense plucked the ball from Alameda (1-3) and finished on a fast break, or slivered through the paint for a timely put-back. The run featured a couple of rousing dunks from Roberson.
Richie referenced one such play in the postgame comments – Roberson had a steal, passed ahead to Bowser “when he didn’t have to,” and then Bowser fired it back to Roberson for the transition basket.
When the third period buzzer sounded, O’Dowd found itself up 62-32, having scored almost as many points in the quarter alone as they did in the first half. In the fourth, with all five starters and Lewis sitting out most or all of the quarter, the Hornets played some of their best ball of the game to make the final score more palatable.
Bishop O’Dowd hosts Oakland next week before heading off to Las Vegas for the Tarkanian Classic, while Alameda participates in the Sacramento High Showcase on Saturday.
