OAKLAND, Calif. Head-Royce lost to Cornerstone Christian 74-65 on Friday night. The visitors won at the free throw line and on the glass, and the loss dropped the Jayhawks to 6-6 with two straight defeats.
The opening minutes went back and forth. Idan Benharush scored twice off turnovers, both on assists from Tucker Peay, to tie the game at 7-7 and again at 9-9. Cornerstone Christian went ahead 11-9 at the line before Head-Royce answered with an 8-0 run. Tucker Peay started it with a free throw and then scored twice off turnovers, both set up by Nick Taubes. Taubes capped the run with a 3-pointer off a turnover, assisted by Sam Gulaid, for a 17-11 lead. Tucker Peay's 3-pointer later made it 20-14, matching the Jayhawks' largest lead of the night at six points.
Head-Royce still led 23-19 after a Benharush 3-pointer, but Cornerstone Christian took control with a 9-0 run that included two 3-pointers and went up 28-23. The visitors stretched the lead to 35-26 before the Jayhawks put together another 8-0 run. Tucker Peay hit a 3-pointer from Tua Montoya, Ezra Goldfarb added a 3-pointer from Benharush, and Taubes scored off a turnover on a feed from Tucker Peay to cut the deficit to 35-34. After Cornerstone Christian scored again, Jack Peay's 3-pointer tied the game at 37-37, the fifth and final tie.
The game turned from there. Cornerstone Christian scored the next seven points for a 44-37 lead. Tucker Peay answered with a 3-pointer, and then the visitors went on an 8-0 run to lead 52-40. The margin reached 15 points at 59-44. Montoya scored on back-to-back possessions to trim it to 59-48, and Jack Peay took over late, scoring 15 of Head-Royce's final 17 points. His basket off a turnover and a free throw finished a 5-0 spurt that made it 72-63, but the Jayhawks got no closer than nine.
Tucker Peay, a freshman, posted a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds, going 4 of 9 from 3-point range and adding five assists and four steals. Jack Peay also scored 18 points and was nearly perfect, shooting 7 of 8 from the field, 2 of 2 from 3-point range and 2 of 2 at the line, with five rebounds and no turnovers. Benharush and Taubes added nine points apiece, and Taubes had four assists, two steals and two blocks. Montoya handed out a team-high eight assists, and Goldfarb scored seven points off the bench.
The Jayhawks moved the ball well, with 22 assists on 26 field goals, and turned Cornerstone Christian's 15 turnovers into 17 points while giving up 11 points off their own 15 turnovers. The difference came elsewhere. Cornerstone Christian made 15 of 20 free throws, while Head-Royce went 4 of 6, and the visitors outrebounded the Jayhawks 37-26. Head-Royce shot 41 percent from the field and 9 of 33 from 3-point range, while Cornerstone Christian shot 47 percent.
Head-Royce, now 6-6, hosts College Prep on Friday, Jan. 16.