Warriors' boys basketball team learns need to play full game

Fallbrook High School’s boys basketball team led for most of the Warriors’ Jan. 18 home game against Valley Center, but the Jaguars made the winning basket with four seconds left for a 58-56 victory at Fallbrook’s expense.

“We learned we’ve got to play 32 minutes. We have to play and compete 32 minutes,” said Fallbrook coach Jonathan Terry. “We’ve got to finish the game like we started.”

The result gave Fallbrook a 1-2 record in Valley League play along with a 7-10 overall mark. After the first three league contests for each school, Mount Carmel led the standings with a 3-0 league record while Valley Center and Westview, who handed the Warriors their other league loss, were both 2-1. Each team will play 10 league games, so the Warriors could still compete for the league championship.

“We’ve still got time, but it’s going to make it tough,” Terry said.

Four consecutive losses closed out pre-league play for the Warriors. Rancho Buena Vista won a 77-61 contest Dec. 15 in Fallbrook; the Dec. 18 game at Canyon Hills was a 55-47 Rattlers victory; a Jan. 4 trip to Tri-City Christian ended with the Eagles on the preferred end of the 59-53 final score, and Olympian’s season record improved to 17-0 after an 81-24 win Jan. 6 in Fallbrook.

“We played a challenging schedule. We had some adversity,” Terry said.

The adversity included player injuries as well as high-quality opposition, although Terry noted a consolation about starters losing games due to injury. “It gave some other guys an opportunity to play and develop,” he said.

Fallbrook’s varsity roster now has 13 players including two freshmen. Maliki Brotherton, Sammy Carmona, and Christian Myers are the only seniors.

League competition for Fallbrook began Jan. 10 at San Pasqual. The Warriors were on the preferred end of the 51-39 final score. The Jan. 12 home loss to Westview was by a 55-51 margin.

Fallbrook had a 14-11 lead over Valley Center at the end of the first quarter. The Warriors held a 37-21 halftime advantage.

“It was the best first half we played all year. Second half, we just didn’t execute,” Terry said.

The Jaguars narrowed their deficit to 46-34 by the beginning of the fourth quarter. Valley Center had a 24-10 advantage in the final period.

“They played harder than we did in the second half,” Terry said.

The score was tied prior to the winning two-point shot.

“We were up almost as much as 20, so that was a tough loss,” Terry said.

“We’ve just got to be able to finish,” Terry said. “We just haven’t done it yet. We’ll just keep working.”

Terry noted that the ability to be a team isn’t the problem. “They get along well off the court,” he said.

Interaction on the court requires coordination the Warriors haven’t yet achieved. “We’ve just got to communicate better,” Terry said.

Terry added that the team needs to learn how to handle faster-paced play. “That’s just game experience,” he said.

Learning how to play on the court without the coach’s instructions is another area targeted for improvement. “I think that’s the next step in our development,” Terry said.