Costa finally beats Rolling Hills prep
by Paul Teetor
“We finally beat Rolling Hills Prep,” a jubilant Mira Costa Coach Neal Perlmutter said moments after the Mustangs defeated the Huskies, 50 to 49, in the Pacific Shores Tournament, hosted by Mira Costa on Saturday, Dec. 3
“When I came here Rolling Hills prep was one of the top programs in the South Bay, and they still are. That’s why I’m so proud of our kids for this amazing win.”
For Perlmutter, the third time Costa played Rolling Hills Prep during his tenure proved to be the charm.
Leading by four points with seven seconds left and knowing that RHP had no timeouts left, the Mustangs were content to let Huskies guard J.V. Tan hoist a three-pointer that connected, and drew them within one point with two seconds to go, but the buzzer sounded before the Mustangs inbounded the ball.
Mira Costa’s Dylan Black watches Kenny Manzi go up for a monster dunk.
It was a fitting end to a hard-fought and long-awaited victory over RHP, which has traditionally dominated Mira Costa while being ranked year after year as an elite South Bay program, thanks in no small part to legendary coach Harvey Kitani.
Kawika Suter flips past Mira Costa’s defense.
Dylan Black, a 3-year Mustang starter whose shot has looked smoother every year after coming off the bench as a freshman, drilled a 3-pointer at the end of the third period to put Costa ahead 43-40.
Then J.V. Tan, a clever point guard with a nice shooting touch, hit a short jumper to pull the Huskies within 43-42 mid-way through the fourth quarter. As the Mustangs came down the court, the ball found its way to Jacob De Armas deep on the right wing, well outside the three-point line.
Jacob De armas-JV Brown
With the Huskies playing off him and basically inviting him to shoot – after all, the scouting report says he is a sky walker, a ferocious rebounder and fierce shot blocker, but not an outside shooter – De Armas took his time, measured the shot, and let fly with a trifecta that hit nothing but net while drawing a huge roar from the home crowd and suddenly giving the Mustangs a 46-42 lead.
Next time down the court, De Armas rose for a monster dunk that sent the home crowd into a frenzy and finally gave the Mustangs some breathing room with a 48-42 lead.
Black, who said he is going to attend Carnegie-Mellon in Pittsburgh next year, led the Mustangs with 17 points while connecting on four three-pointers. Mustang guard Will Householter chipped in with 14 points. Tan led RHP with 20 points and Jordan Lee added 12.
Contact: teetor.paul@gmail.com. Follow: @paulteetor. ER