When he banked in a 3-pointer, Anastasios Marcopulos knew it would be a good night.
Marcopulos was 7 for 7 on 3-point shots in the first half. He was 0 for 3 on 3s in the second half, but that first half was good enough to get Servite off to a hot start as the Friars beat Canyon, 71-51, at Canyon on Monday in a pool play game on the first day of the Canyon/Esperanza Tip-Off Classic.
Marcopulos, a senior guard, scored a game-high 21 points, all on those first-half 3s in the season opener for both teams.
When he banked in that 3 …
“When I shot it I thought, ‘oh no,’ ” Marcopulos said. “When it went in I thought, ‘this must be my night.’ ”
It was a good night for the Friars. Marcopulos quickly made three 3s for a 9-0 lead. The Friars had a 37-18 lead at halftime.
Canyon made a comeback – the Comanches made a wild comeback eight months ago in a CIF-Southern Section championship game win – to cut the deficit to nine. But Servite pulled away again to win by the 20-point margin.
Friars coach John Morris was pleased with the team’s effort and hopes that continues.
“I liked our grit and toughness on the defensive side of the ball,” Morris said. “We have to keep getting after it and not settle.”
Justin Trias, one of the stars of that CIF-SS championship comeback in March, led Canyon with 10 points.
Canyon plays Northwood on Tuesday at Canyon at 7:30 p.m. Servite’s next game is against Paramount on Wednesday at 6 p.m. at Canyon.
The championship game of the tournament is Saturday at 7 p.m. at Esperanza.
Also in the Canyon/Esperanza tournament:
Esperanza 53, Sonora 48: Kezie Okpala scored 19 points for the victorious Aztecs. Kevin Marlow led Sonora with 17.
In the Jim Harris Memorial Tournament of Champions:
Ocean View 87, Bellflower 49: Paul Head scored 20 points and Zamir Kelly added 19 for the tournament-host Seahawks.
