COSTA MESA – Senior guard Anthony Tello christened the Freed Center with a career-high 30 points to lead Vanguard to a 87-71 victory over La Sierra on opening night of the 2024-25 men's basketball season Tuesday.
Tello shot 9 of 16 overall, including 4 of 6 from distance and 8 of 9 from the foul line. He added seven rebounds and five steals in 27 minutes of action.
Senior Jackson Larsen added 11 points on 5 of 10 shooting. Eight other Lions also got into the scoring column, with Chris Chiles and Pape Cisse chipping in eight points apiece.
The Lions shot 48.5 percent (32 of 66) overall from the field, making 11 of 27 (40.7%) from three-point land. VU also had 17 steals and had turned 21 La Sierra turnovers into 25 points.
Four Golden Eagles (0-3) scored in double figures, led by Alex Archer with 15 points.
What Happened?: Bryson Metz scored the first basket in Freed Center history 14 seconds into the game, giving the Lions a lead they would not relinquish.
VU held a modest 16-13 lead before erupting on a 12-2 run. Cisse's putback dunk ignited the charge, and three-pointers from Carson Frawley and Chiles opened up a 28-15 lead at the 10:55 mark.
The Golden Eagles slowly chipped away and narrowed their deficit to 35-31 with 3:37 remaining in the first half. The Lions went three minutes without a point until Robert Aguirre Jr. knocked down a triple to put VU back up by seven.
Tello hit a jumper and sank a trey to hand the Blue and Gold a 43-35 lead going into halftime.
VU scored the first seven points of the second half to complete a 10-0 run, opening up their largest lead of 15 points at 50-35 following Larsen's three-pointer.
Archer's layup got the Golden Eagles on the board, but a Tello three and a Frawley layup widened the margin to 57-39 at the 14:32 mark.
The VU lead never dipped below 11 points from there.
Tello scored eight of VU's final 13 points to cap off his first career 30-point performance as a Lion.
VU won its third straight season opener.
What Was Said?: "I'm proud of the guys for being ready to go tonight and playing hard for the entire game," said Head Coach Rhett Soliday. "We showed some great flashes of what this team is capable of, and we also showed that we have a ton of room to grow. The best part about this team is that they aren't afraid of the work. Tello was electric tonight offensively, and I thought Metz and Breeze really controlled the pace of the game with their pace and their pressure. Boogie getting four steals is always fun to watch. He is everywhere making plays at key times in the game."
What's Next?: The Lions return to Freed Center on Saturday with a 1:00 p.m. matinee against San Francisco State.
