Head-Royce turned its defense into offense on Thursday, piling up 20 steals and 24 points off turnovers in a 67-39 road win over Redwood Christian JV. The Jayhawks (9-5) never trailed, were never tied and won their second straight game.
Head-Royce opened with a 10-0 run. Micah Riebel hit a 3-pointer on an assist from Jonah Greenberg and then scored off a turnover. Sanil Saxena added the next five points and capped the burst with a 3-pointer off a turnover, set up by Riebel. After Redwood Christian cut the gap to 12-4, the Jayhawks answered with a 6-0 run on baskets by Saxena, Greenberg and Riebel for an 18-4 lead. Redwood Christian never got back within single digits.
When the hosts pulled within 20-10, Mikael Akpala hit a 3-pointer on a feed from Max Roston-Saul and then scored off a turnover to make it 25-10. Greenberg took over from there, scoring five of the next seven Head-Royce baskets, including two in a row off turnovers and a putback that made it 40-22.
Redwood Christian scored to make it 40-24, and Head-Royce answered with the run that settled it, 13 straight points. Riebel started it, Zac Gottschalk scored on a putback, Greenberg converted another turnover, and Akpala and Riebel added baskets before Gottschalk hit a 3-pointer from Greenberg for a 53-24 lead. After a Redwood Christian 3-pointer, the Jayhawks ran off 8 more in a row. Riebel scored, Greenberg finished a Riebel pass, and Saxena hit a 3-pointer on an assist from Seabass Heredia-Zulaica and then a free throw. That made it 61-27, the largest lead of the night at 34. Henry Tatara scored off a turnover and Heredia-Zulaica added a putback. Akpala scored Head-Royce's final basket on a Riebel assist, and Redwood Christian hit a 3-pointer to make the final 67-39.
Greenberg led Head-Royce with 16 points on 8-of-15 shooting and grabbed 11 rebounds, 9 of them offensive. He also had 6 steals, 3 assists and 2 blocks. Riebel posted a double-double with 15 points and 10 assists and added 4 steals. Saxena scored 14 points on 5-of-7 shooting, went 3-of-5 from 3-point range and had 3 steals without a turnover. Akpala added 13 points on 6-of-10 shooting and 2 steals.
Head-Royce shot 38.5 percent (30-of-78) and made only 6 of 35 3-point attempts, but it more than made up for that with extra possessions. The Jayhawks took 30 more shots than Redwood Christian, outrebounded the hosts 33-29 and held an 18-9 edge on the offensive glass. That led to a 15-0 advantage in second-chance points, and Head-Royce outscored Redwood Christian 24-6 off turnovers. The Jayhawks also had 15 assists against 10 turnovers. Redwood Christian shot 33.3 percent (16-of-48) and went 4-of-20 from 3-point range.
With the win, Head-Royce improved to 9-5 and has won two straight.