OAKLAND, Calif. Head-Royce opened its 2024 summer season with a 69-47 win over SEALS 16u on Thursday, June 13, moving to 1-0. The Jayhawks' defense decided it: they turned 16 steals into 25 points off turnovers, while SEALS 16u scored six.

SEALS 16u held the upper hand only briefly. Tucker Peay scored on a putback and Tua Montoya hit a three off a turnover for a 5-0 lead, but SEALS 16u answered with three baskets and two free throws for an 8-7 edge, its only lead of the game. A basket by Montoya put the Jayhawks back in front at 9-8, and they never trailed again.

Head-Royce began to pull away from there. Alex Jones hit a three and Peay scored off a turnover for a 16-10 lead. Baskets by Owen Curry, Adagio and Lil O made it 22-13. After a SEALS 16u basket, Head-Royce went on a 7-0 run, with a Lil O three, a Curry putback and an Adagio basket off a turnover, to go up 29-15. SEALS 16u responded with an 11-0 run of its own, which included two second-chance baskets and a three, and cut the deficit to 29-26.

Jones ended that run with a three on a pass from Montoya. SEALS 16u made two free throws to pull within 32-28, and then Head-Royce took control with a 13-0 run. Jayan scored off a turnover, Peay added a basket, Lil O hit a three off a turnover and Montoya scored inside. Peay then scored off turnovers on consecutive possessions, the second on a feed from Jones, to make it 45-28. Later, a 7-0 run of a Peay basket, a Jones three and a Curry putback pushed the margin to 54-32. Jones closed the scoring with a three from Montoya, which set the final at 69-47 and gave Head-Royce its largest lead, 22 points.

Peay led all Head-Royce scorers with 19 points on 9-of-15 shooting and added five rebounds, three assists and two steals. Jones posted a double-double with 12 points, all on 4-of-8 shooting from 3-point range, plus 10 rebounds and five assists. Lil O scored 11 points with three 3-pointers and three steals. Montoya had nine points and a team-high six assists. Jayan finished with four assists and a team-high four steals.

Off the bench, Curry scored eight points and led the team with 12 rebounds, nine of them on the offensive glass. Adagio added six points, and the reserves combined for 16 points.

The teams shot almost the same from the field, with Head-Royce at 40 percent (30-of-75) and SEALS 16u at 39.6 percent (19-of-48). The Jayhawks built the gap on extra possessions. They grabbed 21 offensive rebounds, which led to a 13-8 edge in second-chance points, and they assisted on 21 of their 30 field goals. SEALS 16u made 6 of 12 free throws, while Head-Royce made 0 of 3.

Head-Royce is 1-0 and has won one game in a row.