Newport Harbor starts slow, can’t catch Barons

NEWPORT BEACH — Malfunctions to the scoreboard at Newport Harbor High began before the third quarter, forcing a couple of people to figure out why the clock wouldn’t start.

Five minutes past, and for the Newport Harbor girls’ basketball team’s sake, it would’ve been all right with having to wait longer.

After unplugging the machine controlling the scoreboard three times and plugging it back in, the scoreboard worked again.

Fountain Valley figured out how to light it up soon after.

The Barons went on a 14-5 run and never looked back, beating the Sailors, 63-50, in a Sunset League game Tuesday night.

What deemed to be a winnable contest for Newport Harbor turned into another league loss.

For the first 14 minutes, the Sailors (4-12, 0-2) played well, controlling the pace and lead. As soon as the scoreboard started to flicker with unreadable numbers, Fountain Valley brushed aside Newport Harbor.

Used to playing on the road due to their home gym going through construction, the Barons (5-11, 1-1) appeared at home in Newport Beach in the second half.

Guards Stephanie Masamitsu and Brooklynn Boes made Fountain Valley comfortable. Big shots can do that, as each knocked down a three-pointer to help their team go ahead by nine points.

Masamitsu’s three-pointer, her fourth in the game, came during the Barons’ 14-5 spurt to start the second half. She finished with a season-high 16 points. Then Boes, who added 13 points, got involved ninety seconds into the fourth, delivering hers after Newport Harbor cut the lead to six.

Newport Harbor would never get closer, as Boes’ three-pointer gave Fountain Valley a 48-39 advantage.

“I feel more comfortable playing away,” said Fountain Valley Coach Jenny Nakano, whose team has won four games on the road. “It takes us a while to get warmed up. Consistently, every game we’ve played, our third quarter is our weakness.”

Except against Newport Harbor.

Assisting the Barons in jumping on the Sailors was grabbing offensive rebounds. The second chances led to points, most of them were possible because of the rebounding effort by 6-foot forward McKenna Henry and 6-2 center Brittany Schutte.

The duo combined for 20 rebounds, just four fewer than what Newport Harbor totaled as a team.

“This team was a little bigger than us,” said Newport Harbor forward Corinne Schnieders of Fountain Valley, which boasted five players taller than 6 feet.

Schnieders, a 5-9 sophomore, did her best to battle with the more formidable players. She finished with 16 points, but the size appeared to wear down Schnieders and the Sailors.

Not helping their cause was sticking to the fundamentals whenever a rebounding opportunity presented itself.

“We weren’t boxing out,” Newport Harbor Coach Jennifer Thompson said. “We started to play a little tentative.”

That wasn’t case in the first half. The Sailors’ pressure defense forced 13 turnovers, but they abandoned the strategy, leaving their coach frustrated on the sideline.

“We weren’t supposed to. It wasn’t my fault,” said Thompson, whose team plays a league game at Esperanza Thursday at 7:30 p.m. “They just stopped pressuring them.”

Another breakdown at Newport Harbor, but no one could figure this one out in time.

Nonleague

Fountain Valley 63,

Newport Harbor 50

Score by Quarters

Fountain

11

17

17

18

—

63

Newport

15

9

13

13

—

50

Fountain Valley -- Masamitsu 16, Boes 13, Schutte 10, Henry 9, Robell 5, Adams 4, Little 2, Sharber 2, Chea 2.

3-pt. goals -- Masamitsu 4, Boes 2, Robell 1.

Fouled out -- Schutte.

Newport Harbor -- Schnieders 16, Anderson 10, Deyan 9, O’Tousa 5, Melo 4, Munnelly 4, Cameron 2.

3-pt. goals -- Melo 1 .

Fouled out -- Schnieders.

Technicals -- None.