Muir takes Arcadia to the cleaners

The Arcadia High boys’ basketball team opened the second half on the wrong end of a 15-5 run and fell to host Muir High, 59-41, on Tuesday night in the CIF Southern Section Pacific League opener.
Trailing, 30-26, at halftime, the Apaches cut the lead to two points on a field goal by Brandon Hardy. However, led by the hot shooting of Dejon William and Andrew Lopez, the Mustangs took over and led at the end of the third quarter, 49-26.
Arcadia coach Ben Cordeiro said while his team played well the result was exactly what they wanted.
“Our effort was there,” Cordeiro said. “We played hard. I’m proud of our guys. The first half our shots were falling. The second half we needed to take better shots. They weren’t as good as they were in the first.”
He added the Apaches gave all they had and will continue to do so all season.
“Today we played hard,” he said. “We played with passion and with energy. I told our guys that’s what we bring to every game. We just got to keep moving forward. We just have to keep taking them one game at a time and work hard.”
The Apaches opened the fourth quarter on a 5-0 run, but watched as the Mustangs reeled off 10 straight points to seal the game.
Daren Sue led the Apaches with 10 points. He also hit a half-court shot to end the first half. Hardy pitched in eight.
William scored a game-high 12 points, while teammates Harris-Austin Desmond and Daniel Harris had eight points each.
Muir coach Simaine Stewart said his team is getting better every time it goes out on the court.
“We look better, but we’re a work in progress,” Stewart said. “We’re a work in progress. We had a couple of guys who transferred in. We had a couple of kids from (junior varsity) who have come up. But it’s a work in progress. Everyday we’re just trying to get a little bit better. We’re not really there yet.”
He added the Mustangs are up against steady competition this season.
“It’s a tough league,” he said. “Hoover is playing great this year. Pasadena, (Crescenta Valley) and Muir have been the guys the past few years. But now we’re at the bottom. Arcadia, Hoover and Burroughs, they’re the ones at the top. It’s a challenge for us this year. It’s good for everybody. It’s good for the kids.”
(Shel Segal can be reached at ssegal@beaconmedianews.com. Follow him via Twitter @segallanded.)

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