Washington holds of Jefferson to win Blue and Gold Tourney

Washington senior guard and tournament most valuable player Brenden Glapion drives past Jefferson's Kyani Harris in the Bud Bresnahan Blue and Gold Tournament on Friday at Jefferson High School in Daly City. (Photo by Devin Chen)

Boys Basketball: Washington holds of Jefferson to win Blue and Gold Tourney
Saturday, December 4, 2010



By Graham Henderson

DALY CITY — The championship game of the Bud Bresnahan Blue and Gold Tournament between Washington High School and host Jefferson High School was still up for grabs with less than three minutes remaining in the game.

The Eagles held a one-point lead over Jefferson, but Washington senior Brenden Glapion pulled through for the Eagles, hitting three of his last four free throws to give the Eagles a four point lead, holding off a run led by Jefferson point guard Edward Mangibin.

Washington senior forward LaVander Moore goes up for a layup in the Bud Bresnahan Blue and Gold Tournament on Friday at Jefferson High School in Daly City. (Photo by Devin Chen)

Mangibin would go 3-for-5 from beyond the three-point arc in the second half, but Glapion’s dead-on accuracy from the free throw line proved to be enough, and the Eagles edged the Indians 57-53.

Glapion was the game’s leading scorer and finished with 16 points. Ten of his points came in the second half.

Washington trailed by four points early in the fourth quarter after giving up five unanswered points, but a timeout by Eagles head coach Jolinko Lassiter changed the momentum.

“We kind of laid into them that they had to play better basketball,” Lassiter said. “They responded well, and they stepped up to the challenge.

Glapion, who was named the tournament’s most valuable player, averaged 23 points and over five rebounds in the Eagles’ three tournament games.

The slower-paced Washington offense was a stark contrast to that of Jefferson’s, which relied heavily on fast breaks and quick 3-pointers by Mangibin, who led the Indians with 14 points and nine from beyond the 3-point line.

While Washington turned the ball over more in the first half, giving the ball away nine times to Jefferson’s two, it was second-half turnovers that hurt the Indians more than anything. Jefferson gave the ball away nine times in the second half.

With both teams shooting inconstantly, it was Washington forward LeVander Moore that controlled the post and gathered a team-high 12 rebounds.

“I was struggling to get the ball at first, but in the later quarters, the ball was coming to me,” he said. “I got some put backs and [got to the] free throw line, but controlling the post was a struggle tonight.”

At times Moore was battling three Jefferson players for rebounds at once. Moore and Washington senior guard Jeremy Jetton both shared the second-highest scores for the night with 15 points each.