Boys basketball routs Culver 81-44
On the night of Wednesday, Jan. 20, the Samo boys basketball team hosted the Culver City High School Centaurs. The Vikings are currently undefeated at home and continued that streak with an 81-44 rout, bringing their overall record to 16-2 and their Ocean League record to 3-0.The game started off pretty slow, with both teams going scoreless for the first couple minutes. Culver jumped out first and that was it for the rest of the night. The Vikings were able to control the lead for the rest of the game. At the end of the first quarter, Samo lead 22-8.Much of the same followed in the second quarter. One of Samo’s keys to success was their press which was creating havoc for the other side. “We’ve been putting a lot of time into it,” head coach James Hecht said. “It’s something that’s definitely in our arsenal and we feel could be a good weapon.”Over the past few games, the Vikings have really been focusing on their defense, sticking to a zone that forces teams to shoot from the outside. The only problem is that the team tends to gamble too much. Players try to jump the passing lanes, which can pay off, but can also lead to open shots for the other team. The Vikings were able to use this to continue to grow their lead and by the end of the second quarter it was 42-18.Coming out of the half, Culver City did do a better job of scoring, but Samo just scored more. At times the team would move the ball well and find the open man. “When we share the ball we’re tough to beat,” Hecht said. “When we don’t share the ball, we allow teams to go on little runs against us.”It is not uncommon to see players make selfish plays, especially at home but this wasn’t too much of a problem as the Vikings lead 59-33 going into the fourth quarter.The fourth quarter was nothing to out of the ordinary. Most of the starters were resting and the team was able to go deep into the bench. “It was good [that] we were able to get guys extended minutes who were not able to get that in the past,” Hecht said.Samo was able to maintain the lead and secure the 81-44 victory, pushing Santa Monica towards being one of the top teams in Southern California.It wasn’t a perfect game for Samo though, according to guard Chailen August (’16), the team had things they want to work on, including shot selection.“It was poor,” August said. “First half was poor. [In the} second half, we got a tongue lashing and we had to pick it up”. Coach Hecht knew Samo had the upper hand in the matchup and wanted to ensure that his team’s execution was pristine.“We felt we were a better team,” Hecht said. “We [need to] really try to focus on execution which I felt at times we did, other times we slipped a bit.”Even after the win, all eyes now turn to the road game against rival Beverly Hills on Friday. August wants a victory. “Just win,” August said. “It has been three years. Just win.”