Esperanza in first place after beating Foothill
Esperanza's formula was simple.
Jack Bazan made the outside shots, Andzej Kolaczewski made the inside shots, and the Aztecs student-cheering section went crazy.
Esperanza beat Foothill, 75-58, Thursday in a Century League game at Esperanza. The Aztecs are alone in first place in this opening week of league play with a 2-0 record in the Century League. They are 10-6 overall.
Kolaczewski scored 30 points on 13-for-16 shooting, with most of those shots layups for unranked Esperanza. Bazan scored 27, including five 3-pointers.
Foothill (13-3, 1-1), which lost to Orange Lutheran in the Orange Holiday Classic championship game last week, was led by Justin Davis' 18 points. He scored 13 in the fourth quarter.
Esperanza challenged just about every shot taken by Foothill, which was 18 of 56 from the field, for 32 percent. The Aztecs made 29 of 52 shots for 56 percent.
"I especially liked how we played defensive in this game, and the past two games," Esperanza coach Mark Hill said. The Aztecs beat Villa Park by 24 points Tuesday. "Our players are learning about the level they can play at."
The score was tied, 16-16, at the end of the first quarter. Esperanza had an eight-point lead at halftime, then outscored Foothill, 20-6, in the third quarter to carry a 22-point lead into the fourth quarter.
Kolaczewski, a 6-foot-6 senior forward, made 10 in a row over a span that began in the first quarter and continued into the fourth. Esperanza guards Bazan, Dillon Wasinack and Jordan Uter frequently dribbled through Foothill's perimeter defense to draw the Knights' inside defenders then handed off the ball to Kolaczewski.
Davis' scoring in the fourth quarter brought Foothill within 10 points early in the fourth quarter. But Bazan and Kolaczewski kept scoring, too. Bazan had 10 points in the final eight minutes, and Kolaczewski scored 8.
Kolaczewski also had a game-high nine rebounds and blocked three shots.
Esperanza plays at El Dorado on Saturday. Foothill, a CIF semifinalist last year and a section champion two years ago, plays host to El Modena on Saturday.
Also in the Century League:
No. 9 Canyon 53, El Dorado 46: Anthony Ballestero scored 21 points for the host Comanches (13-4, 1-1).
El Modena 53, Villa Park 43: The Vanguards (1-1 league) got their first league victory in two seasons as Giancarlo Gibson and Austin Payne scored 14 points apiece.
In the Academy League:
Crean Lutheran 55, Oxford Academy 38: Kevin Barron-Maquire and Andrew Jacks scored 15 and 12 points, respectively, for the host Saints (10-4, 1-0).
In nonleague:
Padre Pio 59, St. Monica of Santa Monica 36: Matthew Odou scored 21 points and Kevin Crostic added 20 for the visiting Rebels (12-6).
Godinez 54, Santa Ana Valley 33: Jamie Manzo's 20 points and four 3-pointers led the host Grizzlies.
Contact the writer: sfryer@ocregister.com
