Diamond Bar dominates Chaffey from start to finish
Amidst all the festivities of senior night Tuesday, the Diamond Bar boys basketball team dominated the Chaffey Tigers on both ends of the floor, blowing the Tigers out, 71-43.
Senior guard Noah Del Campo, returning for his second game of the season after recovering from a severe ankle injury, displayed an offensive clinic on the floor, slashing the defense for easy layups in the paint while draining multiple three-pointers. The Brahmas picked apart the Chaffey 2-3 zone defense from start to finish, and any Tigers’ adjustment was to no avail.
Diamond Bar put the game out of reach right from the opening tipoff, scoring an array of buckets through dribble drive penetration toward the heart of the Tigers’ defense. Once the Brahma guards drove the basketball past the free-throw line, simple kickouts to the wings or inside passes to senior center Mark Wu generated numerous baskets for Diamond Bar.
Moreover, the suffocating full-court man defense of the Brahmas caused lots of back-court Chaffey turnovers, preventing the Tigers from reaching the scoreboard until the first five minutes had passed. With Chaffey unable to buy a bucket after missing a majority of their perimeter shots, Diamond Bar established a 15-point lead at the end of the first quarter, leading 17-2.
The second quarter featured more balanced scores between the two teams. Although the Brahmas sunk a significant number of three-and-key field goals, Chaffey continually earned free throws that were generated from careless fouls committed by Diamond Bar, leaving the Brahmas in deep foul trouble before the conclusion of the first half.
At the start of the second half, the Tigers switched their defensive scheme from zone defense to man-to-man defense, forcing the Brahma guards and wings to facilitate and make plays from the top of the key. Junior Blake Davis thrived with this adjustment; he constantly blew by his man to score floaters after displaying a series of dribble combinations at the top of the key.
Freshman Myles Che was also another beneficiary. After the Brahmas ran screens and moved the ball across the perimeter in order for Che to spot up on the wings, he nailed open three-point shots to increase the Diamond Bar lead up to 36 points.
After Chaffey’s adjustments to man defense proved ineffective, the Brahmas yet again pounded the ball through the helpless Tigers’ zone defense with ease. Diamond Bar also gained more second-chance opportunities inside the paint due to a plethora of offensive rebounds, practically putting the game out of reach.
The entirety of the fourth quarter was more like an exhibition game, as both teams emptied their benches and inserted role players into the game.
The Brahmas improved their record to 7-2 after this blowout win, and they are second in league standings.
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