The Culver City High School boys’ basketball team will travel to Redondo Beach High School to play 10-1 North Torrance at 11 o’clock Thursday at 11 a.m. in the Redondo Beach Classic.
They hope to get back on the winning track after losing last Friday to St. Bernard 69-64. If they expect to beat a good North Torrance team they need to be ready to play from the tipoff.
Against St. Bernard, the Centaurs fell behind early. “We let them get off to a fast start,” said guard Chris Edwards who scored 17 points.
A slow start and 10 turnovers put Culver City far back.
“When we hit the road we must be ready to fight,” said Culver City head coach Adam Eskridge after the loss. “We did not practice well the day before, so I knew this was going to be a tough game. We did not take this game seriously. That is why we fell behind in the first quarter.”
The Centaurs kept the game close in the second half behind the scoring of Armani Nicolis and solid defense. Nicolis finished with 26 points. He was unstoppable in the middle. “In a game like this, I tell him to take over the game,” Eskridge said. “But he is such a team player. We need to find more ways to get him the ball.”
Nicolis is averaging 17 points and nine rebounds for the 5-5 Centaurs. He needs to take advantage of his superior talent. “I’m not a selfish player,” said Nicolis. “If I try to do things by myself, it’s not going to work. You need a team to win games.”
When the Centaurs start Ocean League play next month, opponents will double- and triple-team the 6-4, 175-pound Nicolis.
He appears up for the challenge. “I don’t put pressure on myself,” said Nicolis. “I just try to go out there, play defense, score points and help my team win.”
If Culver City wants to compete for the Ocean League title, they need to play defense the whole game and cut down on turnovers. They need more players to fill key scoring roles. One of those players is Issac Girley. He is averaging eight points, but coach Eskridge says he needs to average at least 12 points if the Centaurs expect to be successful in league.
“I think we can compete for the league, but we have to be more consistent and improve our shot selection,” said Eskridge. “At this point in the season I am happy with the team, but I am not satisfied. I feel like we left wins out on the court. This is a hard- working group. We have to work on our mental game to go to the next level.”
Mr. Finley may be contacted at sfinley50@aol.com
