Haakon Ullrich scored 22 points with 11 rebounds for Tustin in the Tillers’ 78-60 nonleague win over Savanna on Thursday at Tustin High.
The 78 points are the most this season for the Tillers, who improved to 9-7. Savanna is 7-10.
Ullrich, a 6-foot-6 senior center, is providing more than points and rebounds for Tustin.
“He’s everything you want in a player in the way he represents our program,” said Tustin coach Ringo Bossenmeyer, in his 17th season coaching the Tillers. “He’s an over-4.0 GPA student and he’s rock solid in terms of senior leadership.”
Thursday’s game was less dramatic for the Tillers than Wednesday’s. On Wednesday, Tustin’s Isaiah Gonzalez made a 50-foot 3-pointer at the final buzzer in the Tillers’ 49-46 nonleague win at Beckman.
On Thursday, the game was tied at halftime, 31-31. Tustin’s Nick Kohler made back-to-back 3-pointers to start the third quarter. Joey Beas scored eight points in the quarter as the Tillers took a 56-45 lead into the fourth quarter.
Ullrich made five of his six shots in the fourth quarter in which the Tillers’ lead grew to 21 points. They were more active on offense in the second half. Tustin’s constant cutting to the basket and accurate interior passing created several easy baskets inside.
Jerome Childs, a sophomore, scored 11 points for Tustin. Beas, a senior, finished with 10 points.
Savanna senior guard Romulo Howard scored 20 points. He is averaging 26 points a game.
Tustin made 31 of 54 shots, 57 percent. The Tillers were 10 for 16 from the field in the fourth quarter. Savanna shot 41 percent from the field (20 for 49).
Savanna plays host today to Godinez. The Rebels open Orange League play Wednesday with a home game against Katella.
Tustin’s next game is an Empire League opener at Western on Tuesday.
Nine Tillers scored Thursday, indicative of the team’s depth. Six of them are underclassmen.
“We’re bringing a lot of bodies in off of the bench,” Bossenmeyer said. “The kids are kind of growing into their roles.”
In other nonleague games:
No. 5 Saddleback Valley Christian 62, San Gabriel Academy 61: Trey Smith’s 31 points led the host Warriors (16-2).
Garden Grove 49, Katella 48 (OT): Brandon Coleman scored 16 points and Jordan Harris added 12 for the Argonauts (10-6) in an overtime win at Katella. Michael Weston paced Katella (3-8) with 22 points.
El Dorado 74, Anaheim 42: Ryen Perry scored 20 points for the host Golden Hawks (8-9).
Bolsa Grande 54, Calvary Chapel 47: Derick Tran and Van Hau Phan scored 16 points each for the visiting Matadors (11-5).
Contact the writer: sfryer@scng.com
