Downey Basketball comes from behind in season opener

DOWNEY - The Downey High School boys’ 2019-20 basketball season has begun, with the Vikings winning their opener at Glendale High School last Friday night 58-57. The Vikings are scheduled to play Long Beach Millikan (3-1) in tournament play on Dec. 4.

In the Downey/Glendale game, the Nitros took an early lead and led 16-14 at the end of the first quarter. Glendale extended their lead by four more points in the second quarter and led 33-27 going into the locker room at halftime.

The Nitros extended their lead by one more point in the third quarter and led 46-39 at the end of the quarter. Downey saved the best for last and outscored Glendale 19-11 in the fourth quarter and came away with the hard fought, 58-57 win.

Viking senior Alec Lucatero finished the game with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Player of the Game senior Jacob Cota finished the game with 12 points, four rebounds, three assists and four steals. Junior Nathan Banuelos finished the game with nine points and senior Armando Ramirez finished the game with seven points, respectively. Eight Vikings scored to secure the win.

Coach Larry Shelton, his staff and players are all looking forward to the start of the 2019-20 basketball season. San Gabriel Valley League play will begin on Jan. 8 when Downey travels to Gahr to play the Gladiators. The Vikings finished last season with an overall record of 19-9 and a league record of 5-5.  

WARREN BASKETBALL: The Warren High School boys’ basketball team is currently 4-1 on the season after competing in the Battle for Rosecrans Tournament held Nov. 19 through 23 at Norwalk High School. The Bears are also scheduled to compete in the Brave Winter Classic at St. John Bosco Dec. 9 through 14.

In the Battle for Rosecrans Tournament, Warren defeated Ayala 69-52 in their first game on Nov. 19, was defeated by La Habra in their second game 74-49 on Nov. 20, defeated Norwalk 77-46 in their third game on Nov. 22, defeated El Dorado 80-58 in their fourth game on Nov. 22 and defeated Yorba Linda 59-56 in their fifth and final game on Nov. 23, respectively.

The Bears will begin San Gabriel Valley League play when they travel to Dominguez to play the Dons on Jan. 8. Warren finished last season with an overall record of 20-7 and a league record of 8-2. The Bears were defeated in the quarterfinal round of the C.I.F. Division 3AA Playoffs last season by Santa Clarita Christian 96-63.

Warren is the 2019 defending S.G.V.L. champion. Coach Zaiid Leflore, his staff and players are all looking forward to the start of the 2019-20 basketball season and competing for another league title and deep run in postseason play. 

DOWNEY WRESTLING: The Downey High School wrestling program hosted the Downey Duals last Saturday at Downey High. Downey, Tustin, Azusa, La Mirada, Newbury Park and Fullerton all competed in dual meet action and Downey won with an undefeated record of 5-0. Tustin finished in second place and La Mirada finished in third place, respectively.

Downey defeated Tustin 45-29, defeated Azusa 72-9, defeated La Mirada 38-33, defeated Newbury Park 48-39 and defeated Fullerton 72-6. Senior Mathew Mendoza (126 pounds) finished 5-0 with five pins and senior Jordan Vega (152 pounds) finished 5-0 with three pins.

 Sophomores Rafael Guerra (160 pounds) finished 5-0 with four pins and one bye and Adan Moreno (285 pounds) finished 5-0 with four pins and one bye. Senior Michael Hernandez (195 pounds) finished in second place with a record of 4-1.

Seniors Mathew Mendoza and Jordan Vega are two wrestlers to keep an eye on this season. Both wrestlers advanced to the second day of C.I.F. individual competition last season before being eliminated and are looking to have breakout seasons this year.

Coach Kyle Acevedo, his staff and wrestlers are looking forward to a strong season and competing for a San Gabriel Valley League championship. Cross-town rival Warren and Paramount will once again be the teams to beat.

MIDDLE SCHOOL SPORTS: The second rotation of middle school sports has been completed and several city championships have been decided. Five total city championships were claimed in boys’ volleyball and girls’ soccer. Doty won 3.5 championships, Griffiths won one championship and Stauffer won .5 of a city championship.

Griffiths won 8th grade boys’ volleyball with a record of 6-0. Doty finished second with a record of 4-2, Sussman finished third with a record of 2-4 and Stauffer finished fourth with a record of 0-6.

Doty won 7th grade boys’ volleyball with a record of 6-0. Stauffer finished second with a record of 3-3, Griffiths finished third with a record of 2-4 and Sussman finished fourth with a record of 1-5.

Doty won 6th grade boys’ volleyball with a record of 6-0. Sussman finished second with a record of 4-2, Griffiths finished third with a record of 3-3 and Stauffer finished fourth with a record of 0-6.

Doty and Stauffer varsity soccer finished tied for 1st place with records of 4-1-1. Griffiths finished in third place with a record of 2-3-1 and Sussman finished fourth with a record of 0-5-1.

Doty won girls’ junior varsity soccer with a record of 5-1. Stauffer finished second with a record of 4-2, Griffiths finished third with a record of 3-3 and Sussman finished fourth with a record of 0-6.

As it stands now, Doty has six city championships, Stauffer has two-and-a-half city championships, Griffiths has two city championships and Sussman has one-half of a city championship.

Up next is baseball and softball where two more city championships are up for grabs.