LA HABRA – As the shots continued to drop, and the buckets began piling up, you knew you were witnessing something special.
Sonora senior Ben Rico caught fire Friday night and was shooting into a basket seemingly larger than what everyone else was aiming at.
When it was all said and done, the Raiders gangly forward scored 18 of his game-high 32 points in the second quarter, breaking open a once-tight contest into a one-sided 85-57 victory over Northwood in the second round of the CIF-SS Division 3AA playoffs.
Top-seeded Sonora (25-4) will be at Pasadena for the quarterfinals on Tuesday night.
“Things were falling my way,” Rico said after the game. “I was getting bounces, getting good looks.
“I got to give it up to my teammates. They were finding me the ball. They knew I was hot, so they were finding me on open looks and I was knocking them down.”
Sonora jumped out to a 20-14 lead after a competitive first quarter that saw Rico lead the charge with eight early points, six coming off transition buckets while the other two were earned at the free-throw line.
While there was no need to use the jumper in the opening eight minutes of play, Rico put on a shooting clinic in the second quarter.
Whether it was a step-back jumper, fadeaway or a leaner, every shot the senior took in the second found the bottom of the net.
Rico went 8 for 9 from the field in the first six minutes of the second quarter, scoring 18 of the Raiders first 21 points before the half.
Other than a Josh Rodriguez 3-pointer sandwiched in, it was the 6-foot-5 small forward making the crowd’s jaw collectively drop with each shot.
“That’s Ben Rico, that’s nothing new,” Sonora coach Mike Murphy said. “He’s so capable of doing that.
“I’ve coached a long time and I’ve had very few players that can heat up like he can. When he gets it going, though, he can really get it going.”
Rico and company stretched their six-point first quarter lead into a commanding 48-29 advantage at the half. In the second quarter alone, Rico outscored the Timberwolves, 18-15.
The Raiders’ on-ball pressure frustrated the backcourt of the Timberwolves (17-11) throughout the night, leading to turnovers and easy buckets in transition for Rodriguez and Christian Rhodes, who finished with 13 and 12 respectively.
“We played a really tough schedule,” Murphy added. “You look at our preseason schedule, we didn’t have any cupcakes on that. I think that helped prepare us for this. And hopefully it’s going to help prepare us down the road.”
Despite trailing by as many as 28 points in the second half, Northwood junior center Jake Linsky proved to be effective throughout the night, finishing with 26 points.
Contact the writer: kconnolly@ocregister.com
