Immediately after the buzzer sounded and Jordan High head coach Ron Massey shook the hands of Long Beach Poly players and coaches, he started receiving hugs and handshakes from people who had rushed from the stands to congratulate him. Massey’s Panthers had just defeated the Jackrabbits, 74-64, to leapfrog Poly and capture sole possession of first place in the Moore League standings.
“Congratulations!” said Long Beach vice-mayor Val Lerch, whose 9th District surrounds Jordan High. It seems he fueled a friendly rivalry with a certain Poly High alum, and fellow Councilman.
“I just called Dee Andrews and told him we won!” Lerch laughed.
Massey thanked his supporters, then headed for sanctuary in the empty, adjacent practice gym and leaned against the wall to catch his breath and reflect on the victory.
“Did we really just win?” he joked, eyes to the sky.
They did, thanks to constant defensive pressure and five players in double figures. Senior forward Will Ervin led the way with 16 points and 4 assists, while junior center Darius Williams pounded for 13 points and 9 rebounds. Senior guard Bernard Taylor also added 15.
Jordan, now 7-2 in league play, survived early foul trouble from athletic senior Stephan Heard, who spent much of the game and most of the second half on the bench. He would still manage 11 points, and the Panthers relied on their speed and depth to maintain a lead throughout.
Poly, on the other hand, struggled to find success inside and lost its third straight to fall to 7-3 in the Moore League – a half-game behind Jordan. Consecutive losses to Wilson and Millikan set up last night’s showdown, and head coach Sharrief Metoyer now finds himself in a new position: second place.
“We just have to win out and hope for the best,” he said. “Things looked so rosy, but now we’ve just got to get back to playing good basketball.”
Coming into the game, Massey and the rest of his Panthers knew that Poly’s previous losses provided a golden opportunity.
“Everybody has been helping us by beating each other in the Moore League,” he said, “So we said that now is the time to help ourselves.”
That they did, forcing Poly into 16-47 shooting (6-23 3PT) from the field. Julian Camper led the Jackrabbits with 16 points and 4 rebounds, while sophomore Ryan Anderson had 11 points and 6 boards. Poly guards Michael Mayes and Alexis Moore continued to struggle as they had in the team’s previous two losses, shooting a combined 2-16 (1-10 3PT) from the field. Jordan was obviously a bit too excited at the beginning of the game and sent Poly to the line often, where the Jackrabbits were 27-36 on the night.
But the story of the game was the speed of the Panthers, which forced Poly into rushed shots and picked apart their various defenses. The Jackrabbits tried man-to-man defense, a standard 2-3 and even a 1-3-1 at times, but Jordan was able to find holes or drive and kick time and time again. The Panthers never lost their lead after taking a 37-33 advantage into the half.
It was an impressive performance from a talent-soaked team that is peaking right as the Poly Jackrabbits are sinking. Jordan inherits the Moore League’s top spot while teams such as Millikan and Wilson are red-hot. But when the buzzer sounded last night, the Panthers couldn’t help but lose themselves in the celebration as their fans danced on the court and the gym roared with cheers – this victory rang beyond campus confines and spilled into the entire community.
“It’s a mutual love affair with North Long Beach. I love them and they love me,” said coach Massey.
“We’re playing for North Long Beach.”