Boys’ Basketball Roundup: Santa Barbara Clears Major Hurdle With 51-41 Victory Over Oxnard

The path to an outright Channel League title became much clearer for the Santa Barbara High boys’ basketball team following a 51-41 victory over Oxnard on Wednesday night.

The Dons came out on top of a gritty, defensive struggle and found just enough offense in the fourth quarter to pull away late.

“Both ways it was low percentage shooting. It was just a battle, a war, and we won it on the defensive end,” said Santa Barbara High coach Greg Zuffelato. “We mixed everything up and not only that but the effort level of our guys really skyrocketed.”

Oxnard defeated Santa Barbara, 64-60, in the first round of league play and trailed the Dons by one game in the Channel League standings going into Wednesday’s contest. 

A big change in the second matchup between the two team’s was the presence of Diesel Lowe, who was forced to sit out the first game due to illness. Lowe scored a team-high 13 points on Wednesday, including eight first quarter points as Santa Barbara took a14-12 lead into the second quarter.

“I was sick last time. I couldn’t actually go to the game. I had to watch the game on Hudl,” Lowe said. “It was just good to get out there, play with my teammates and get a good win so that we are in a better position for league.”

A three-pointer by Carter Battle at the 5:25 mark of the second quarter increased the Santa Barbara lead to 21-14, but Oxnard responded with a 10-2 run capped off by a driving layup from Josh Ullegue to take 24-23 with 1:10 left before halftime.

The Dons answered with four straight points capped off by a rebound and put-back at the buzzer by DJ Wilson that put them ahead 27-24.

Battle showed off his prowess on the defensive end of the court in the second half with a steal and a layup that capped off a 11-3 Santa Barbara run and increased the lead to 38-27.

Santa Barbara took a 41-33 lead into the fourth quarter but Oxnard quickly cut the deficit to 41-37 on a driving layup by D’aries Garrett. However, a layup by Zuffelato and a corner three-pointer by Wilson gave Santa Barbara a 46-37 lead with 3:10 remaining in the game.

The visiting Yellowjackets did not come closer than seven points behind Santa Barbara for the remainder of the game. With the victory Santa Barbara improves to 21-5 overall and 11-1 in Channel League play. Oxnard dropped to 19-7 overall and 9-3 in Channel League play.

The Dons can clinch an outright Channel League title with a victory over rival San marcos on Friday.

. San Marcos, 57; Dos Pueblos, 42

The Royals used a strong second quarter to pull away from the Chargers in a crucial Channel league contest for  both teams.

Danny Diaz led the way for San Marcos with 15 points, Brody Green added 14 points and Koji Hefner chipped in 11 points. Dos Pueblos received an excellent performance from senior Shane Grant who scored a team-high 13 points.

San Marcos is still in the hunt for a  share of the Channel League title and will travel to Ventura on Friday. Dos Pueblos will need to win its final Channel League games to have a shot at the fourth and final automatic playoff berth.