Garden Grove League : Split Personality Catches Up With Bolsa Grande
It may be only a matter of time before Bolsa Grande High School Coach Tony Lipold has a couch moved into his office. Layup drills may soon be replaced by word-association sessions with his players. Pictures of inkblots will take the place of play diagrams.
Lipold appears to be coaching a team with a split personality, and therapy just might be the only solution.
There were certainly shades of Jekyll and Hyde in the Bolsa Grande team that showed up for Friday night’s game against Garden Grove in the Matadors’ gym. By the time the final buzzer sounded, Lipold had watched his team undergo a rather ugly transformation, and Garden Grove had a 66-58 victory.
In the first half, Bolsa Grande appeared on its way to getting back in the race for a Garden Grove League playoff spot. The Matadors hit 10 of 18 shots (55%) from the field, led the league-leading Argonauts by as many as seven points.
The second half was another story, one Lipold said he’s seen unfold far too many times this season. Layups were missed, balls bounced off the heads of Matador players and out of bounds, and the home side of the scoreboard might as well have been frozen.
The Argonauts broke the game open by outscoring Bolsa Grande, 12-0, over the first four minutes of the third quarter. The Matadors quickly found themselves trailing, 42-32, and could never recover.
“It was like two different teams,†Lipold said. “It’s been that way all season long. The second half . . . I just can’t figure it out.â€
All of this is not to suggest that Garden Grove didn’t have something to do with bringing out the worst in the Matadors. After a sporadic first half, the Argonauts went to an effective, pressure defense and took advantage of nearly every free-throw opportunity in the second half. Coach Gene Campbell, who’s team remained tied with Rancho Alamitos (both 5-1) for the league lead, said Garden Grove wasn’t exactly itself in the first half.
Garden Grove League
League Overall School W L W L
Garden Grove 5 1 12 7 Rancho Alamitos 5 1 10 9 La Quinta 4 2 8 9 Santiago 2 4 9 9 Bolsa Grande 2 4 9 10 Los Amigos 0 6 2 15
“The defensive intensity wasn’t there,†he said. “I guess that’s our ignition switch. When that’s not there, our offense isn’t as crisp as it should be.â€
The Garden Grove defense created turnovers in the second half, and the Argonauts converted them into points. Six players scored for Garden Grove in the third quarter, as the Argonauts outscored Bolsa Grande, 18-9, to take a 48-41 lead into the final period.
The Matadors were forced to foul to get back in the game, and free throws are something that have been an integral part of Garden Grove’s quest for its first Southern Section playoff appearence since 1972. The Argonauts made 7 of 19 shots from the field in the second half, but were 22 of 25 from the free-throw line.
Charles Guibord, Garden Grove’s consummate “sixth man,†came off the bench to lead all scorers with 16 points. Guibord was 10 of 10 from the foul line, 8 of 8 in the fourth quarter. “Give me Charles Guibord at the free-throw line in the fourth quarter, and we’re not going to lose too many,†Campbell said.
Raul Duran had 14 points for Garden Grove, and Mark Keifer added 10. Brent Kaser, playing with the flu, had six points but was praised by Campbell for his defensive efforts in the third quarter.
The Argonauts appear on their way toward breaking the drought between post-season appearences, but Campbell is not ready to lean back and get comfortable just yet.
“Not in this league,†he said. “No . . . uh-uh. This is just the first game of the second round. Right now, we’re 1-0. We have to view it that way.â€
Lipold said Bolsa Grande’s position is more clearly defined at 2-4 in league play. “This leaves us in trouble,†he said. “We have to beat Los Amigos and Santiago, and hope we can knock off La Quinta and maybe force a tie for third.â€
GARDEN GROVE (66)--Crone 7, Duran 14, O’Connor 8, Kaser 6, Keifer 10, Guibord 16, Fournier 3, Kanagae 2.
BOLSA GRANDE (58)--Cao 1, Valdez 2, Afdahl 12, Swoboda 12, Graves 12, Nguyen 7, Rudy 2.
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