OAKLAND, Calif. Head-Royce came back from 18 points down to take a late lead, but Sacred Heart JV closed with a 9-0 run and beat the Jayhawks 53-46 on Friday. Sacred Heart made six 3-pointers and scored 12 points off Head-Royce turnovers. The Jayhawks fell to 6-5 with their second straight loss.
Jonah Greenberg scored the first basket of the game, and LaMarr Covington's basket on an assist from Nick Taubes gave Head-Royce a 4-3 lead. Sacred Heart answered with an 8-0 run for an 11-4 lead, and after a Taubes basket, it added a 10-0 run capped by a second-chance 3-pointer to go up 21-6. The margin reached 18 at 25-7. Covington hit a 3-pointer, then made two free throws and a basket late in the half to start a 16-0 run, and Head-Royce trailed 27-14 at halftime.
The Jayhawks kept the run going after the break. Taubes made two free throws, Jack Peay scored, and Covington and Taubes added points before Greenberg converted a basket off a turnover and a free throw. Peay's second-chance basket completed the run and cut the deficit to 27-26. Sacred Heart answered with a second-chance 3-pointer and a basket, but Head-Royce stayed close. Ezra Goldfarb scored on an assist from Peay and then hit a 3-pointer to make it 34-33. The game had four lead changes and one tie.
Sacred Heart went back up 39-33 before Taubes scored twice to make it 39-37. A Sacred Heart 3-pointer off a turnover made it 42-37, and then Head-Royce scored seven straight points. Greenberg scored on a feed from Covington and then scored off a turnover on an assist from Davis Lynch. Taubes's basket gave the Jayhawks a 43-42 lead, and Greenberg's free throw made it 44-42, Head-Royce's largest lead of the game. Sacred Heart then scored nine straight points, five of them at the free throw line, and took a 51-44 lead on a 3-pointer off a turnover. Greenberg's basket cut it to 51-46, and Sacred Heart made two free throws to set the final score.
Greenberg led Head-Royce with 13 points on 5-of-10 shooting, plus 6 rebounds and 3 steals. Taubes, a freshman, added 12 points, a team-high 4 steals and 2 assists. Covington scored 10 points and had a team-high 4 assists. Peay, also a freshman, had a team-high 7 rebounds and 6 points, and Goldfarb, a sophomore, scored 5 points on 2-of-3 shooting.
The two teams shot almost the same from the field: Head-Royce made 42 percent and Sacred Heart made 43 percent. The Jayhawks also outrebounded Sacred Heart 23-16 and had 12 steals. The difference was outside shooting and ball security. Sacred Heart made 6 of 21 3-point attempts, while Head-Royce made 2 of 12, and Sacred Heart outscored the Jayhawks 12-4 in points off turnovers. Sacred Heart also grabbed 9 offensive rebounds and made 11 of 19 free throws, while Head-Royce made 8 of 14.
Head-Royce (6-5) hosts Bentley JV on Tuesday, Jan. 9.