Dec 12, 2014 3 min read

CALIFORNIA – The Jefferson-Morgan boys basketball team got off to a 3-0 start to the season but put that unbeaten mark on the line Friday night at California in the Section 3-A opener for both teams.

Unfortunately for the Rockets, they ran into Trayo Matthews and a hot-shooting California team.

Matthews scored a game-high 26 points, knocking down six three-pointers, as California cruised to a 54-38 win.

“We are a tough team to defend when we are shooting the ball well,” said California head coach Bruno Pappasergi. “We can be effective in so many mays and if we are hitting the perimeter shot like tonight then our offense can be real good.”

The Trojans (1-0, 3-1) broke open a close game after one quarter by putting together a 14-2 run in the second quarter that was fueled by the three-point shot.

Once the Trojans figured out how to penetrate Jefferson-Morgan’s zone defense, there were plenty of opportunities available for penetration that led to passes to open shooters on the perimeter. And Cal knocked down its shots.

California broke open a 13-10 game in the second quarter with three-pointers from Kass Taylor, K.C. Zajicek and Matthews in succession to take a commanding 27-14 lead at the half.

“Once I knocked down the first one I got in a rhythm,” said Matthews. “We came out a little nervous against their zone, and it being the first section game, but once we figured it out and started moving the ball around we were ok.”

The Trojans kept the pressure on in the third quarter with a 17-6 run, 10 of which came from Matthews, to take a 44-20 lead, their biggest of the game.

“That’s what Tray is,” said Pappasergi. “He’s put the time in. He’s not just a streaky shooter. That’s what he is capable of every game.”

Taylor left his mark on the game in a big way as well.

The sophomore finished with 15 points, but also impacted the game as a rebounder, a defender, and more importantly a passer out of the high post.

“Kass is an all-around player,” said Pappasergi. “That’s where we can be a hard matchup for teams. He can go out and be a point guard for us as easy as he can drop down and play the five. That’s one advantage we have with Kass. He occupies two guys and our guards can get loose.”

J-M (0-1, 3-1) was led in scoring by Rece Henneman with 17 and Dylan Davis chipped in 12. But it was very tough for the Rockets to find consistent offense against an aggressive Trojans defense.

California alternated between its usual man-to-man defense and a zone.

“Give them credit,” said J-M head coach Dennis Garrett. “They came out and they beat us. We didn’t throw the ball away as much as they forced us into mistakes. They played well and made shots. We made a lot of mistakes. They beat us on the boards and outplayed us offensively and defensively. They deserved to win the game.”