Pintos win third straight after victory over Knob Noster

The California Pintos boys basketball team (6-3) won their third straight game Dec. 18, after a 75-45 win over the Knob Noster Panthers.

Head coach Ron Lebel said the reduction in the team's turnovers is a key for their winning streak.

"I think the biggest key for us is that we do a better job of not turning the basketball over," Lebel said. "We are executing a little better and we are understanding the offense a little better. We are not just looking for option one anymore, or option two anymore. We understand that in our offense there is a few other things going on."

The Pintos jumped out to a 14-7 lead after the first quarter. In the second quarter, the Pintos added to their lead, as they made it a 10-point game at 17-7 early in the second quarter. The Pintos' offense had great success in the second quarter, as they outscored Knob Noster 17-13 to head into halftime up 31-20. The Pintos led by as much as 13 points in the first half.

California had some foul trouble in the first half, as they committed eight fouls while Knob Noster only had three fouls.

Lebel said it can be hard to get fouls called on another team, when they are in a 2-3 zone defense like Knob Noster was.

"When you are sitting in a 2-3 zone, sometimes you don't commit a lot of fouls," Lebel said. "I do think we executed on the offensive end a lot better in the second half than we did in the first half against the zone."

The number of fouls was much more even in the second half, as California commited seven fouls while Knob Noster commited nine fouls.

In the second half, California's offensive success continued, as they quickly pulled away, thanks to a 21-9 run in the third quarter. The Pintos 3-point shooting, too, was a big factor in the run, as the team made it a 52-29 game with just over two minutes in the quarter. California made their first four 3-pointers in the second half and shot 6-11 from deep in the half.

The game was firmly in California's control, as they entered the fourth quarter up 59-31. In the fourth quarter, California led by as much as 32 points.

The Pintos had success at the free-throw line, as they were 4-6 from the line in the game. Turnovers had been something the team has focused on, as they struggled with it last year. In this game, the team turned the ball over only twice in the second half.

"We had a little success tonight because we didn't turn it over quite as much," Lebel said. "We are getting more shots up and, when we are not throwing it to the other team, you are giving yourself a chance to win the basketball game."

Jordon Geiser scored 18 points and made four 3-pointers. Trystan Hees had 16 points. Isaac Ash scored 13 points for the Pintos and made three 3-pointers in the game.