PARAMOUNT – The season came to an end for the Paramount girls basketball team Saturday night with an emotional 56-41 loss to Canyon High of Canyon Country in a CIF-SS Division 2AA second-round playoff matchup.
It was a wire-to-wire loss for Paramount (16-8), which fell behind from the onset of the game and was never able to get into any rhythm offensively.
Canyon took control early and never relinquished it as they led the Pirates by as many as 17 points in the first half.
Paramount came within nine points early in the third quarter, but Canyon continued to answer every run to maintain its lead throughout the second half and sealed the win by making big free throws in the fourth quarter.
The ending was difficult for Paramount. The frustration over the loss and with the officiating in the game came to a head in the final minutes. Two Pirates players were assessed technical fouls and one player was ejected with 20 seconds left in the game.
Paramount coach Leon Polk gracious in defeat and talks about what went wrong in this loss to Canyon and how he felt about 2 of his players getting techs at the end of the game @BeachVarsity @presstelegram pic.twitter.com/CKBxGo9NFD
— Chris Camello (@Chris_Camello) February 12, 2023
Paramount coach Leon Polk talked about what went wrong in the game.
“I felt like we started off mentally unprepared,” Polk said. “Physically, we tried hard but mentally we were not engaged the whole game. We came back in the second half a little bit different, but the first half bit us in the butt a little bit at the end, but overall I’m proud of my girls.”
Polk also spoke about his disappointment with how the game ended with the technical fouls late in the fourth quarter.
“For me, it’s more about mental toughness,” Polk said. “You have college coaches in the stands, you never know who is watching, and I told them ‘you gave them at least 10 points off of that.’”
Polk’s daughter, Kaylani, was one of the bright spots…
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