By RYAN ARENA

L’Observateur

RESERVE – Riverside surged in the second and third quarters Wednesday night to defeat Karr, 68-49.

Riverside’s Ricardo Gathers scored 18 to lead all scorers. Louis Dabney scored 12, Zelvyn Smith scored 11 and Lucas Martin added seven for the Rebels (6-2).

Riverside led 11-6 after the first quarter, but outscored Karr (5-7) 47-21 over the second and third periods combined.

“We got off to a slow start,” said Riverside coach Timmy Byrd. “At the beginning of the second quarter, Ricardo started attacking the basket and it changed the dynamic of the game. We made a few consecutive stops, made a couple of outside shots to break up their zone and from there we were able to do what we wanted to do on offense.”

Byrd credited his point guard, Lucas Martin, for taking care of the basketball in the face of Karr’s pressure.

“He had two turnovers at most,” said Byrd. ”He did a really good job in that area.”

Byrd said that his team looked at the Karr game as a tune-up for this weekend’s challenge: the City of the Palms tournament at Fort Myers, Fla. The 16-team tournament is ranked by CBS and ESPN the nation’s top high school tourney. The Rebels begin play there today, starting with Winter Park, the defending Florida Class 6A champions.

That team is led by guard Austin Rivers, the top recruit in the nation according to ESPN and a commitment to Duke. He is the son of former NBA star and current Boston Celtics head coach Doc Rivers.

“We’ll have to play flawless basketball,” said Byrd. “They’re ranked top 10 in the nation. This is a big challenge for us, but playing against these teams give us a chance to really get better.”