ENCINO — In a battle for small-school supremacy, Santa Clarita Christian topped Valley Torah 69-60 in a Heritage League game at Crespi High School on Tuesday night.
Highlights of Tuesday night’s matchup between Santa Clarita Christian and Valley Torah at Crespi High. Showdown between Jordan Starr and Ryan Turell. @SCCS_Athletics @VTHS_Athletics pic.twitter.com/ys1QIoVijQ
— Tarek Fattal (@Tarek_Fattal) January 31, 2018
Led by senior Jordan Starr’s 18 points, Santa Clarita Christian (12-9, 8-0) moved into the driver’s seat for the league title.
“We didn’t come out ready to play in the second half, and Valley Torah hit shots to come back,” Starr said. “But we buckled down in the fourth and hit shots of our own to push the lead back up.”
Starr helped Santa Clarita Christian pull away with a 10-4 run to start the second quarter, as the Cardinals took a 36-21 halftime lead. The Cardinals led by as many as 21 in the third after a floater from freshman point guard Noah Veluzat.
But Valley Torah’s Ryan Turell responded, by himself.
Turell had his own shining moment in the third. With his team trailing by 19, the 6-foot-6 senior had 14 points in the third quarter, including 11 straight, highlighted by a steal and a two-handed dunk. A Nimi Altit three-point play brought Valley Torah to within three, 48-45, entering the fourth quarter.
“I had to bring the energy,” Turell said, who finished with a game-high 33 points. “It didn’t matter how many points we were down, we had to keep fighting. I think when I started to make shots, everyone else loosened up and started making shots too.”
Kevin Stone scored 16 and Kaleb Lowry added 11 for the Cardinals. Altit finished with 15 for Valley Torah (23-4, 9-1).
A corner 3-pointer from Stone with just over a minute left gave the Cardinals a two-possession lead that forced Valley Torah to foul at the end of the game. Made free throws from Starr and Lowry iced the game.
“I can’t wait to play Santa Clarita Christian again. We are going to come out hungrier and angry,” Turell said of Feb. 8’s rematch.
All eyes were on the notable matchup between Starr and Turell, both of whom are long, athletic shooters – each with a handful of NCAA Division I scholarship offers.
Especially with both teams eager to compete after steamrolling through league games by wide margins. Before Tuesday’s game, Santa Clarita Christian’s winning margin was 58 points per game, and Valley Torah had won by an average of 39 points.
“It can be very tough to play consecutive games that aren’t competitive then try and get up for a big game,” Starr said. “But we make up for it with intense practices. Also, we’ve played some very good nonleague teams this year, which I think prepares us for tougher games like tonight.”
Santa Clarita Christian is currently No. 2 in the most recent CIF Division 5AAA poll. Valley Torah is No. 4 in Division 4A.
