Worku gets scoring record as Los Al tops Edison

Los Alamitos' Eyassu Worku, who scored 15 of his 31 points in the fourth quarter, takes a shot early in Friday's game against Edison.
Edison guard Nate Matthews, center, tries to recover after losing control of the ball as Los Alamitos guard Connor Laines, left, defends during Friday's game.
Los Alamitos guard Cary Makiyama, right, and Edison center Tommy Barlow go after a loose ball under the basket in Friday's game.
Los Alamitos' Connor Laines, second from left, goes for the steal against Edison's Randall Walker on Friday.
Edison players react as they trail Los Alamitos near the end of the second period of play on Friday.
Edison guard David Atencio, left, Los Alamitos guard Pepe Garcia, center, and guard Jake Barton, right, reach as they try to get control of the ball during Friday's game.
Los Alamitos guard Cary Makiyama, left, gets tangled with Edison guard Randall Walker under the basket as they go for a rebound during Friday's game.
Los Alamitos center Conner Goen, left, jumps in front of Edison guard Randall Walker to block a shot during Friday's game.
Los Alamitos coach Eddie Courtemarche signals to his team during Friday's game.
Los Alamitos fans wave pictures of their favorite players during Friday's game against Edison.
Los Alamitos fans cheer on their team during Friday's game against Edison.
Edison fans try to encourage their team as they trail Los Alamitos during Friday's game.
Los Alamitos guard Eyassu Worku, left, and Edison forward Garrett White fight for a loose ball during Friday's game.

By Steve Fryer | sfryer@scng.com | Orange County Register

January 8, 2016 at 11:19 p.m.

LOS ALAMITOS – When he was a freshman, Eyassu Worku was not thinking that some day he would become Los Alamitos’ career scoring leader.

“I didn’t even know if I would ever play varsity,” Worku said.

He might have set the bar low for himself back when he was a freshman. As a senior, Worku has set the bar as high as it can go.

Worku scored 31 points, 15 in the fourth quarter, to lead Orange County’s No. 3-ranked Los Alamitos to a 61-51 win over No. 10 Edison in the Sunset League opener for both teams at Los Alamitos High.

Worku needed 17 points to break the school career scoring record of 1,427 points set by Jason Cunningham in the 1990s. Edison, which trailed Los Alamitos by 13 points in the third quarter, had cut the Griffins’ lead to 39-38 behind the hot shooting of Nate Matthews who scored 16 points in the fourth quarter.

Worku responded with a jump shot in the fourth quarter that pushed the lead back to three points and gave him the scoring record.

He followed with a 3-pointer that made it 44-38 midway through the fourth quarter. His second 3 of the quarter made it 50-40 and the Griffins were on their way. At one point of the fourth quarter, Worku scored 15 straight Los Alamitos points.

Worku, a 6-foot-2 senior who signed with UC Irvine, also had four steals and four assists. He is averaging 26 points, eight rebounds and four assists a game. Last week, Worku scored 51 points in a tournament game in Escondido.

Los Alamitos coach Eddie Courtemarche continues to be impressed.

“Eyassu’s got a motor that never stops,” Courtemarche said. “He’s more competitive than any player I’ve been around.”

Pepe Garcia added 10 points for the Griffins, who improved to 14-3.

Edison (13-4) was led by Matthews’ 19 points. Matthews also had the task of guarding Worku, who afterward would say that Matthews is one of the better defensive players he has faced this season.

Randall Walker scored 13 points for the Chargers.

Los Alamitos 6-8 sophomore Jacob Eyman had seven blocked shots.

The Griffins had a 13-7 lead at the end of the firs quarter. Work had zero points in the second quarter but a couple of slick drives by Cary Makiyama helped keel Los Alamitos ahead. The Griffins took a 24-15 lead into halftime.

Worku opened the third quarter with a pair of scoring drives and added a baseline jumper, and Los Alamitos quickly had a 30-17 lead.

Contact the writer: sfryer@ocregister.com