No. 1 Torrey Pines boys bounce No. 7 Carlsbad

Clark Allard was part of 190 wins in seven years as an assistant coach at Torrey Pines.

He came home Friday, May 14, and took a loss in his first game as a head coach in the Torrey Pines gym as No. 7-ranked Carlsbad dropped an 83-67 North County Coastal League decision to No. 1 ranked Torrey Pines.

“It was so weird coming back,” Allard said. “I love those guys and root for Torrey Pines every game except the two we play them.

“I’m proud of my guys, though. We competed, but Torrey is so hard to gameplan for. And they run their stuff so well.”

Jackson Strong, Allard’s assistant, played at Torrey Pines, scoring 800 career points.

Torrey Pines improves to 21-0 overall and 3-0 in league play. According to MaxPreps, the Falcons are one of only four teams nationwide to be unbeaten after 20 games.

The others are Beaumont United (Texas), which is 31-0, Orlando Christian Prep at 27-0 and Santa Ana Mater Dei —the No. 1-ranked team in California — at 20-0.

“That’s crazy,” said Chris Howell, who scored 20 points, had eight rebounds and has signed with Saint Mary’s.

“Honestly, it’s a blessing just to play with these guys. We have great chemistry off the court. We truly are a band of brothers. And it shows on the court.”

Asked about playing against Allard, Howell said, “I miss him. He’s a really good coach. Carlsbad is in good hands with him coaching.”

Torrey Pines has scored 80 points or more in four straight games, the most since 2004 and is averaging 74 points a game.

Otto Landrum, who has three straight double-doubles, led Torrey Pines with 21 points and he had 16 rebounds.

Cameron Klein added 12 points and Bick Herrmann 10 for the Falcons.

Caleb Nelson, who has signed with Cal Poly Pomona, led Carlsbad with 21 points — 13 in the first quarter. He sat out the last 5 minutes of the second quarter after getting his third foul.

Mason Bowers added 20 for the Lancers (12-5, 3-2).Toby Harris added 13.

Carlsbad averages 23 3-point attempts a game and made 13 of 30 long-range shots.

But Torrey Pines outrebounded Carlsbad 44-10, led by Landrum, Howell and Diego Campusano, who had eight.

Torrey Pines led by 15 late in the second half, but Carlsbad cut the deficit to seven at 44-37 early in the third quarter.

By the end of the quarter, the margin was 18.

— John Maffei is a sports writer for The San Diego Union-Tribune