YORBA LINDA – You can throw recent history out the window when the league schedule rolls around.
No. 5 Foothill flipped the switch on some recent offensive woes, defeating Yorba Linda, 74-58, Tuesday night in a Century Conference game at Yorba Linda High.
Riley O’Hern scored 30 points on five 3-pointers. Eric Patton added 21 points and seven rebounds to help Foothill.
Offensive execution had been a concern for Knights coach Rusty Van Cleave. Foothill (14-3) had dropped two of its last three games, twice failing to reach the 50-point plateau. The Knights had averaged 63 points per game through their first 13 contests.
“I thought we got everybody a lot of touches, and the right guys were getting the open looks,” Van Cleave said, who added ball movement was the key. “Riley had a terrific game shooting the basketball.”
Reed Nakakihara was productive across the board with 13 points, six assists, and six steals.
“I’m the point guard. I’ve got to run the show,” Nakakihara said. “I know I have good teammates that are going to score the ball. Defensively, I have to bring the tempo and set the tone for my teammates.”
“Foothill beat us. They were better than us,” Mustangs coach Jason Pietsch said. “There’s a reason they’re one of the better teams in the county. I was more frustrated about our defensive recognition tonight.”
Pietsch said his team wanted to crowd O’Hern and Patton on defense, but the duo was allowed to produce 51 points. O’Hern shot 11 of 17 from the field, mostly on open jumpers.
Foothill led, 38-23, going into the half.
In the second half, the Mustangs’ offense caught fire. Yorba Linda nailed five 3-pointers in the third quarter, but the Mustangs could not get enough stops to start a comeback.
Isaac Douglass (26 points) was the catalyst of Yorba Linda’s offensive burst. He scored 11 points in the quarter.
“I knew I felt it, so I just kept trying to find my shot,” he said. “My teammates kept giving me the ball, so I was able to hit a couple shots to try to keep it close.”
Alex Godoy added 11 points, and Michael Toubbeh chipped in eight.
On Friday, Foothill will host El Modena, and Yorba Linda will be at Canyon in Century Conference games.
