SANTA ANA – Segerstrom rode its hot shooting from beyond the arc to beat rival Godinez, 59-46, Friday in a nonleague boys basketball game at Segerstrom High.
Richard Salinas led the Jaguars with 21 points including five 3-pointers. Isaiah Robinson chipped in with 15 points, 11 of which came in the opening half.
Segerstrom (6-2) has won five consecutive games since starting the 2015-16 campaign 1-2.
The Jaguars started the game applying intense defensive pressure that forced some early turnovers for the Grizzlies.
Godinez (3-4) committed 11 turnovers in the first half which led to several easy buckets in transition for Segerstrom and an early 18-7 lead after the first quarter. Robinson was a force in the opening frame scoring eight points for the Jaguars.
The Grizzlies went on a small 5-0 run to open the second quarter and trailed 18-12 but Salinas hit his first three of the game to make it 27-17 in favor of Segerstrom.
The Jaguars took a 13-point advantage into halftime and didn’t look back.
The Grizzlies would respond in the second half behind the play of Miguel Alcocer and Niko Escobedo. Alcocer would score seven points in the third quarter and Escobedo had a team-high 13 points.
Godinez closed the deficit to nine points with a pair of baskets to open the second half but Salinas would answer with a 3-pointer to make it 36-24 Segerstrom.
The Grizzlies fought hard to get back in the game after a Bryan Rivera steal and layup cut into the Jaguar lead 45-37. But Salinas hit a long-range jumper once again as Godinez would get no closer.
Back-to-back triples by Salinas and Robinson gave Segerstrom a 53-39 advantage as seemingly any shot from 3-point land was falling for Salinas.
Salinas would add one more triple for good measure that made the score 56-40 and put the game away for good.
