Tyler Api was red hot early for TC
By Tim Peterson
(Temple City) – Temple City racked up 26 points in the first quarter and then held on late to beat Simi Valley 65-62 Wednesday night in the first round of the CIF Division 2A Playoffs.
The Rams knocked down 12 threes in the game including 10 in the first half. Temple City led 26-15 after one and 42-33 at the half. The Rams scorched the nets with six three pointers in the first quarter including four by Tyler Api who had 14 in the quarter.
Api cooled off in the second but Jeremy Wong picked up the slack burying three from long range and Brandon Trang also hit one from distance as the Rams still led by nine.
Both teams had trouble finding a groove in the third quarter as TC was still up by 10 heading into the final frame.
Simi Valley made a push in the fourth behind Kaden Young and Marcus Wilson. Young had 10 in the quarter and Wilson scored seven including a three. The Pioneers took the lead with 3:27 left on a basket by Elijah Holts. But Api came back with a pair of free throws and Trang hit a bucket to make it 61-57 with 1:45 left.
Jeremy Wong hit the biggest shot of the night with 49 seconds left
Wong hit the biggest shot of the night sinking a three pointer with 49 seconds left to give the Rams a 64-59 lead. After Rich Hollinger hit a free throw with 11 seconds left to make it 65-62, Simi Valley had two chances to get even but both Young and Holts missed from behind the arc as time ran out.
Joe Torosian’s novel about San Gabriel Valley football is available through Amazon.com
Young led all scorers for Simi Valley with 25 and Wilson had 17. The Rams had a balanced attack with four players in double figures. Api took scoring honors with 20 and Wong had 18. Trang and Zech Jarrard also found double digits with 12 and 10 respectively.
The Rams, second in the Rio Hondo, now look forward to the second round.
Leave a Reply