Corona del Sol bench fuels another come-from-behind victory

January 6, 2011 by Les Willsey, AZPreps365


The household names for the Corona del Sol boys basketball team are not Rashidi Kabamba, Braden Tennyson and Nick Siefker.

Those names, however,  were music to the ears of Aztecs coach Sam Duane Jr. on Thursday night.

Each of the three played a key part off the bench in Corona picking up yet another come-from-behind win, this time a 62-44 triumph over Chandler at Corona del Sol.

Kabamba, a 5-foot-10 senior guard, who transferred to Corona from Houston after the team had made its cuts, has worked his way in Duane's lineup off and on. Kabamba is quick, but when he entered in the third period he made everyone else appear as if they were standing in mud. He drove the lane for two baskets in the third quarter, the first putting Corona (11-2) ahead for the first time, 32-31, with 2:17 left in the third period. The second was length of the floor  to put the cap on a 17-6 edge the Aztecs forged in that quarter. It gave them a 40-33 lead heading to the final quarter.

"He came in from a Princeton offense," Duane said. "It's taken some time for him to get used to the way we do things. He really gave us a spark tonight. We have a deep bench. It's hard to get playing time for everyone, but when we've needed some help one or two guys usually come through."

Kabamba finished with 13 points, adding an additional nine in the fourth period. Tennyson's contribution was eight points - including two 3s in the first half. They were important because they were the Aztecs only perimeter scoring in the first half until freshman starter Casey Benson made one in the final seconds of the first half. Corona has won five games this season in which it trailed by 10 or more in the first half.

Corona trailed 25-14 with three minutes left in the first half thanks to good penetration and shot selection by Chandler (7-9). Add  to that the zone the Wolves played forced Corona to hoist up some extra long shots. Corona connected on 7-of-28 shots from the floor in the first half.

Nick Siefker, who has returned to action this season after ankle surgery last year, gave Corona a third-period lift along with Kabamba. Strong defensive play in the paint and pair of baskets inside were a nice complement to Kabamba.

"I ilke the way we defended the second half," Duane said. "We played much better on defense, especially in the third quarter."

Chandler, which made 50 percent of its shots in the first half, but just 2-of-13 in the pivotal third period, got a game-high 18 points from Troy Hurley. Corona, which has now won six consecutive games, had three starters in score in double figures. Avery Moss had the most consistent game of the three with 16 points and 12 rebounds. Benson had 11 points and Calaen Robinson had 10. Robinson struggled shooting (3-of-14), but came up with at least six steals on the defensive end.