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Originally published January 31, 2012 at 11:15 PM | Page modified January 31, 2012 at 11:19 PM
O'Dea 59, Seattle Prep 47
O'Dea hits on all cylinders to topple Prep
Special to The Seattle Times
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There was no fear.
The O'Dea Irish weren't daunted. Confident from the get-go, the Irish proved how good they can be in all phases.
Senior forward Dana Abe supplied 17 points and 10 rebounds as O'Dea finally arrived in 2011-12, leading start to finish Tuesday in knocking off second-ranked Seattle Prep 59-47 in a key Metro League 3A game.
"When O'Dea and Seattle Prep play, it's a rivalry game, so rankings don't matter," said O'Dea coach Al Hairston. "It's always going to be a rivalry game."
Point guard Jalen Ward directed the Irish with leadership and precision as O'Dea (14-6 overall, 11-4 league) stayed in the hunt for the Mountain Division title.
Seattle Prep (17-3, 14-2), which played without head coach Mike Kelly who was on an administrative retreat for the school, never found a groove on offense. The Panthers had their 12-game overall winning streak snapped and a 14-game string against in-state competition.
"We're starting to come together," said the 6-foot-4 Abe. "We've had talks about bringing more energy to the games and that has really helped. It really played a factor today. Everybody was talkative and discussing what we needed to do."
Irish senior guard Sekou Wiggs stepped up with 16 points and four assists. Ward put up 11 points, five rebounds and two steals.
The Irish avenged a 49-46 defeat in the first meeting on the road at Prep on Jan. 6. O'Dea got off to a slow start in that game and rallied from a 17-point hole to make it close in the end.
Hairston sent a message during pregame about starting fast and left the gym pleased with the results.
"I think it's baby steps for us," said Hairston. "Aside from our three seniors, we are young. I think if we've learned anything, we learned we've got to play four quarters and we've got to play right from the beginning of the game."
Jacob Lampkin, at 6-foot-8, did his part on the Panthers' star, UC Santa Barbara-bound Mitch Brewe.
"Our up-and-coming sophomore did a great job on (Brewe)," Ward said.
Brewe still managed to post 20 points and nine rebounds.
