Staff Reports
It's not too often that a team can have twice as many turnovers as points scored in one half and still come back to win.
But that's what the Galena High boys basketball team was able to do as it came back to beat Nevada Union 50-47 in overtime on Friday at home. The Grizzlies overcame a dreadful first half in which it committed 16 turnovers and scored just eight points.
Derek Lorenzen also overcame a scoreless first half to score all of his 30 points in the second half and overtime. Lorenzen hit six three-pointers in the second half and scored all six of Galena's points in overtime on a field goal and 4-of-4 foul shooting.
"Derek took the game over," Galena assistant coach Matt Kromberg said. "He just started feeling it. We just got him better looks in the second half. He worked harder to get the looks."
The Grizzlies still trailed by 10 points with four minutes left. "We just said if we're going to make a run it's got to be now," Kromberg said.
Lorenzen made two threes out of the timeout to bring Galena within four points and regulation ended in a 44-44 tie. "The kids stepped it up on defense and it just started to turn our way," Kromberg said.
Galena trailed 21-8 at halftime and Kromberg said the Grizzlies were also hurt on the boards. "Then we decided to step it up in the second half," Kromberg said.
Ryan Bristol added eight points for Galena, which hosts defending San Diego section champion La Jolla at 5 p.m. today. La Jolla is coming off a five-point loss to Hug on Friday. 6-5 blue chip player Grayson Moyer scored 35 points against Hug.
NEVADA UNION 43, GALENA GIRLS 39
Nevada Union outscored Galena 15-5 in the fourth quarter to pull out the win. "We had some turnovers and we didn't have stops," Galena coach Karen Friel said.
Nevada Union scored 21 of its 43 points on three-pointers as it hit seven shots from behind the arc. Friel also said Nevada Union hurt her team on the boards. "We didn't rebounds well at all," she said.
Caitlin Anderson scored 15 points and Caitlin Crofts added eight points for Galena.