SoCalHoops High School News

CIF SoCal State Regional Semifinals:
Game Details--(March 10, 2000)

All of the boys state semifinal games (with the exception of the Division I games) were played last night; the finals are all on Saturday for the Southern Regional titles, and the right to represent the Southern California area in Sacramento in the State Finals a week from this weekend. There were a couple of HUGE upsets yesterday, among them most notably when the No. 2 team in the State, Artesia was knocked by Bakersfield Foothill; as you'll read from the details, there were reasons extraneous to the game which might have altered the outcome had Artesia been at full strength, but that's not to take away anything from what Foothill accomplished with the win.  We weren't actually in attendance at that game (we went to Bishop Montgomery and saw the Knights beat Centennial in a D-III semifinal) but from what we understand this was a pretty exciting game (unless you're a Pioneers fan).  In any event, here are the results from all of the Southern Regional games from last night together with a look at the individual brackets for each of these divisions (Southern Regionals only).   For a look at the entire State Tournament brackets, use this link.

Division II Boys Southern Regional Semifinals

Compton Dominguez 87, San Diego Serra 58--With the loss by Artesia last night to Foothill, things just got a whole lot brighter for the Dominguez Dons' chances to pick up another Southern Regional title and another trip to Sacramento for the State Final next weekend against the NorCal Regional champion. But before that happens, the Dons will have to get by Foothill, which upset the Pioneers last night in Bakersfield.  That game will be played tomorrow, Saturday March 11, at 3 p.m. at the Great Western Forum with the winner advancing to Sacramento. Last night, the Dons had no trouble dispatching Serra.  James Profit (6'-7" Sr. C) finished the game with a team-high 18 points, but the only two field-goal attempts he made with Chandler guarding him came in the third quarter, with the Dons already leading comfortably.  Tyson Chandler (7'-0" Jr. C) who guarded Profit for most of the night, scored 20 points, 10 rebounds and had two blocked shots.  Dominguez led 21-12 after one period and 44-27 at halftime. Dominguez opened the second half with layups by Micah McKinney, Chandler and Keith Brooks and follow shots by Brooks and Chandler to extend the lead to 54-27. Brooks, one of the Dominguez seniors, finished with 12 points and 11 rebounds before sitting down for good at the end of the third period. Chandler was finished with 7:26 left in the fourth quarter and most of the Dominguez regulars sat down soon afterward. Aside from Brooks and Chandler, the Dons received double-figure scoring from Darius Sanders (13), Donald Bluitt (10) and Steve Moore (10). The Dons also dominated the boards, outrebounding the Conquistadors, 51-23.

Bakersfield Foothill 59, Artesia 54--Playing without its two top players, Amuary Fernandez and Jack Martinez,  Bakersfield Foothill pulled off the most improbable win of the season by knocking off No. 2 seed and No. 8 in the nation (USA Today) Artesia before a standing room only crowd last night in the Division II State Southern Regional semifinal.  Fernandez left two minutes into the game after dislocating his right shoulder on a hard foul by Lee (the same shoulder that was dislocated last summer in Vegas at the Big Time and which kept him out after surgery until early this season)  and Martinez didn't start and only played for a minute of the first half because of a stomach flu. Martinez, a 6-foot-8 junior center, left only 1:17 into the game suffering from a 103-degree temperature. Then 45 seconds later, Fernandez went down with a dislocated right shoulder after a hard foul by Foothill's Daniel Lee. Fernandez, who is 6-foot-9, and Martinez combine to average 38 points and 27 rebounds per game. The duo contributed 35 of the Pioneers' 86 points in an 86-50 win over East in Tuesday's first-round game.  But without them,  it was all Foothill and Daniel Lee, as the senior forward broke open a 53-53 tie by making two free throws with a minute and two seconds remaining in the game, then put it away by stealing the ball on Artesia's ensuing possession and driving in for a layup to give Foothill (21-12) a 57-53 lead with 0:43 left.  Lee, who finished with 14 points, also hit two free throws with five seconds to go to ice the win and set off a wild celebration as the near capacity crowd at East High stormed the court to celebrate the improbable upset victory over Artesia (30-3), the eighth-ranked team in the nation. The Pioneers led 17-9 with 1:18 left in the first quarter, but Foothill closed the quarter on a 9-0 run in the final minute and took its first lead of the game at 18-17 on a first quarter buzzer-beating shot by Demar Walton in the lane, bring the crowd to its feet. Artesia outscored Foothill 19-9 in the second quarter to take a 36-27 halftime lead, but Walton, who had a team-high 17 points, again gave the Trojans the lead back at 42-39 on a clutch 3-pointer with 2:15 left in the third. Foothill trailed 46-45 at the end of three periods, but three baskets by Calloway in a three-minute stretch gave the Trojans the lead back at 53-52 with 3:46 to play. Artesia's Andre Hazel made the second of two free throws with 2:30 left to tie the contest at 53-53, setting up Lee's last-minute heroics. Ryan Reyes brought Artesia to within 57-54 on a free throw with 32 seconds left. Artesia missed an opportunity to tie the score when Andre Hazel's 3-point attempt caromed off the rim with five seconds left. Lee made two free throws for the final margin. A capacity crowd stormed the floor in celebration as the buzzer zounded. Artesia players and coaches threw chairs onto the floor. Some pounded the walls. Others stared at the floor from the bench. Almost all broke into tears.Jon Steffanson kept the Pioneers in the game with a game-high 18 points, including four 3-point baskets. Hazel had 13 and Matos scored 10 for Artesia, whose only other losses were to Dominguez. Artesia extended a 36-27 halftime lead to 39-29 on a 3-point basket by Hazel in the first minute of the second half. Foothill scored the next 13 points to take a 42-39 lead with 2:15 left in the quarter. The Pioneers went 5:36 without a point before Reyes broke the drought with a tip in with 1:45 left in the third quarter

The game was being played at East because the Trojans' home gymnasium was too small to house the overflow crowd, estimated at around 2,000.  Foothill will play Compton-Dominguez (33-2), the top-ranked team in the nation and an 87-58 winner over Serra in the other quarterfinal, on Saturday at 3 p.m. in the Division II Southern California Regional Finals at the Great Western Forum in Los Angeles.  The Trojans, who were just 14-12 four weeks ago and finished tied for second in the Southeast Yosemite League, entered the game unseeded and facing the second-ranked team in the state in Artesia, whose only two losses had come against Dominguez.  Artesia led most of the first and second quarters and for stretches of the final two periods, but Foothill came coming back time and time again to grab the momentum and the lead away. Jon Stefansson scored a game-high 18 points. ARTESIA (30-3) Stefansson 18, Hazel 13, Matos 10, Reyes 5, Heron 4, Roberts 2, Meilleur 2. Totals 18 11-19 54. FOOTHILL (21-12) Walton 17, Lee 14, Calloway 12, Robinson 8, Dunham 5, Mendez 2, Hernandez 1. Totals 19 18-22 59. Artesia 17 19 10 8 — 54 Foothill 18 9 18 14— 59 3-point goals— Artesia 7 (Stefansson 3), Foothill 3 (Walton 2). Total fouls— Foothill 18, Artesia 17.

Division III Boys Southern Regional Semifinals

Bishop Montgomery 55, Compton Centennial 49--Despite trailing until there was just 2:47 to play in the fourth quarter, the Bishop Montgomery Knights (26-5), behind Errick Craven's 26 points won, getting 14 of their 16 fourth-quarter points from the free-throw line at home.  Ellis Myles scored 30 points for Centennial in the last high school game of his career.  Centennial also lost to Bishop Montgomery in the Southern Section final six days earlier at LMU. The Apaches finish the season at 21-13.  The win Thursday night pushed the Knights into unchartered territory for the school, as they have never advanced to the Southern California Regional final. Bishop Montgomery will play Morningside Saturday at 12:45 p.m. at the Great Western Forum for the right to compete for the Division III State championship. Morningside, which advanced by defeating Corona del Mar, 61-46, was eliminated in the Southern Section semifinals by Bishop Montgomery.  The Knights, trailed for most of the game and went into the fourth quarter down, 41-40.  Bishop Montgomery managed to outscore the Apaches, 16-8, in the final quarter despite only converting one field goal and didn't score its first points until the 4:25 mark. Centennial should be given credit though, because after the half, they switched to a 3-2 zone which basically prevented the Cravens or point guard Kenny D'Oyen from penetrating and as a result, the Knights were forced to take a lot more outside shots than usual.   Kenny D'Oyen though hit three big three pointers at crucial moments in the game, and while Ellis Myles was particularly effective in the post, again the Knights' defense gave Centennial fits. Bishop Montgomery held the Apaches to 2-of-7 shooting in the fourth quarter and scoreless for the first 3 minutes. They forced four of their 14 turnovers in the period, none more important than Errick Craven's steal and ensuing two-handed slam which seemed to fire up not only the crowd but also the rest of the Knight's team which had been playing tight and seemingly unable to get through the Centennial zone. The dunk gave Bishop Montgomery a 48-43 lead with 2:01 left and all more importantly, the needed momentum to win the game. The Knights finished off the game by making 14 of 19 free-throw attempts while the Apaches missed five of their eight attempts in the fourth quarter. Point guard Kenny D'Oyen finished with 13 points and Fred Washington had seven. Ellis Myles once again turned in a dominating performance. The 6-foot-8 center, who scored 27 in the first matchup, had a game-high 30 points, including seven of his team's nine in the third.

Morningside 61, Corona del Mar 46--Corona del Mar was eliminated in a semifinal game for the second time in two weeks (the first was the CIF Southern Section semifinals) and last night it was in the State Southern Regional to Morningside.  Corona del Mar finishes at 23-8, and Morningside (23-10) moves on to play Bishop Montgomery on Saturday at 12:15 p.m. at the Great Western Forum. The Sea Kings were outscored, 18-5, in the third quarter, in which they made just one of their 12 shots.   Morningside's Tracy Cathey, a 6-foot-1 senior guard, scored 13 of his game-high 21 points in the third quarter to help the Monarchs erase what had been a four-point halftime lead for Corona del Mar. The Sea Kings had their last lead of the game when Alec Hanson hit a three-pointer to give them a 32-31 edge, but Morningside responded with an 11-0 run and never looked back.  Morningside led at the end of the first quarter, 11-7, and remained ahead until midway through the second quarter when Corona del Mar assumed a 16-15 lead. The Sea Kings' biggest advantage was a five-point lead in the second quarter. Kevin Hansen led Corona del Mar with 14 points. Hanson finished with nine points, and Brooks Morris and Judd Hietbrink added eight each. For Morningside,  Dante Tatum, Dwayne Trotter and Khali Young all scored 10 points each. Trotter also had 18 rebounds.   Corona del Mar made only 17 of 54 field-goal attempts and only five of 20 in the second half.  Morningside took an 11-2 lead, but Corona del Mar recovered and managed to penetrate several times for easy baskets. Corona del Mar caught the Monarchs, 13-13, at the 6:04 mark of the second quarter, and eventually led 25-20 following a basket by Brooks Morris and a three-pointer by Kevin Hansen.  Corona del Mar's 27-23 halftime lead became a 42-32 deficit by the time the third quarter ended.  Morningside took a 33-32 lead on a basket by Tatum, then got another quick jumper following a Sea King turnover by Cathey.  Hansen, who faced constant pressure from Morningside's rotating press, made only four of 17 shots from the field. 

Division IV Boys Southern Regional Semifinals

St. Bernard 77, Orange Lutheran 69--St. Bernard survived an early and a late run by Orange Lutheran, defeating the Lancers, 77-69, in the semifinals of the Southern California Regional basketball playoffs Thursday at St. Bernard. St. Bernard will play in the Southern California championship game Saturday night at The Pyramid in Long Beach. It's the first time St. Bernard has gone this far in the playoffs since it went to the first state championship game in 1982. Jason Whieldon had a game-high 30 points for the Lancers, while teammate Patrick Salyer had 20. Brandon Williams had 17 for the Vikings, while teammate Chrismen Oliver had 16. St. Bernard took a 17-point lead on two free throws by Williams with 7:48 to play in the game. But Orange Lutheran went on a 16-5 run, pulling to 67-61 on a three-pointer by Whieldon with 3:12 to play. Orange Lutheran twice more pulled to within six points. But St. Bernard kept hitting its free throws, never letting the Lancer get closer. St. Bernard had a 4-0 lead to open the game, but Orange Lutheran reeled off 10 consecutive points. With 32 seconds to play in the first period, the Lancers had opened a 24-13 lead. Whieldon led Orange Lutheran's hot early shooting period. The senior had 14 points in the first quarter, including four three-pointers. The game swung in St. Bernard's favor in the second quarter as the Vikings opened a seven-point lead with 2:25 left in the first half, but Orange Lutheran tied the game again, at 35, with 47 seconds left before halftime. St. Bernard blew the game open in the second half, as Orange Lutheran's shooting cooled off. The Vikings steadily pushed their lead into double digits. ORANGE  LUTHERAN-- Howard 5, Whieldon 30, Nault 4, Salyer 20, Nath 6, Goedl 2, Canada 2 ST. BERNARD-- Oliver 16, Burts 4, Williams 17, McCrumby 6, Moore 9, Haynie 4, Uzondo 12, Nunnally 9;  Orange Lutheran 24 11 10 24-- 69; St. Bernard 15 24 21 17--77 Three pointers: ORANGE LUTHERAN--7 (Whieldon 6, Howard); ST. BERNARD 5 (Williams 3,Moore 2)  Technicals: Salyer Records: Orange Lutheran 25-6; St. Bernard 26-5

Crossroads 58, San Diego Lincoln Academy 48--Lincoln High's boys basketball team came up short in its bid for a fourth regional championship and a shot at a second state title. More specifically, it came up short in big men.   The Hornets, confronted with Santa Monica Crossroads' Isaiah Fox in last night's CIF Southern California Division IV Regional semifinal, had to play without their best big man, 6-4 sophomore Nate Carter.  Carter suffered a sprained ankle at the end of Tuesday's opening-round win over Gardena Serra and didn't play as the Hornets lost to Crossroads 58-48 at the Brentwood School gym.  Second-seeded Lincoln, the San Diego Section runner-up, finished the year with a 22-7 record. Third-seeded Crossroads (24-9), the Southern Section Division IV-A champion, advanced to tomorrow's regional final at Long Beach State.  The Hornets were led by freshman guard Shawn Davis' 17 points and 15 points from senior C.J. Bussie, who also had 10 rebounds filling in for Carter.  Fox finished with 16 points and 20 rebounds and 6-4 guard Felipe Williams had 19.  Fox had only six points at halftime as he was 2-of-7 from the free throw line.   Crossroads' half-court trap gave the Hornets fits as they they turned the ball over 19 times and failed to get open shots for Davis.  During the pregame warm-ups, Lincoln's players were lined up for the traditional layup drill as Crossroads players took a warm-up lap around the court. Fox appeared to deliberately veer onto the court and bump a Lincoln player.  Shoves were exchanged before Lincoln assistant coach Hosea Hall and the game officials separated the players.  No other incidents occurred until 54 seconds remained. Lincoln's Cedrick Palmer was ejected from the game for wrestling with Williams when they were chasing a loose ball.

Divison V Boys Southern Regional Semifinals

Price 75, Calvary Chapel Downey 69--Jermaine Jamison scored 20 points and Andrew Howard added 18 for the Knights (31-1) in the victory at Manual Arts.  Price led, 35-30, at halftime.  Calvary Chapel went ahead, 46-45, before Price came back. Jamison scored 10 in the first quarter. Price jumped to a 14-8 lead near the end of the first quarter but then let Calvary Chapel go on an 11-0 run to take a five point lead. However,  Price regained control to go into halftime up 35-30 thanks in major part to 3 three pointers by Andrew Howard. Calvary Chapel came out sizzling to start the third quarter with an 11-4 run that saw them take their final lead of the game at 41-39. Again, Price did not wilt and took control as Howard and Andre Jones were a perfect 10 for 10 on free throws in the second half combined. Calvary Chapel came as close as at 56-52 but could not come up with the big shot when needed and also had a tough time down low and on the baseline giving up points. Jonathan James led Calvary with 22 points including 14 in the fourth  quarter and Tim Drisdom finished with 16 including 14 in the second half.  Matt Henderson added 13 for the Grizzlies (26-7). Howard had 18 points for the Knights (31-1), Othell Johnson hit for 12 and Chris Alexander added 11 for Price.

El Cajon Christian 59, La Jolla Country Day 57--Junior shooting guard Chris Carter hit seven three pointers as El Cajon Christian beat host La Jolla Country Day59-57 in the Southern California Regional Division V semifinals.   Carter's beyond NBA-range shot with two minutes to play broke a tie, and when teammate Tim Brown took a steal in for a layup a few seconds later, LJCD was suddenly forced to scramble, down 57-52.   This was a different experience for Carter from last week when his inability to find the range in the San Diego Section championships at Cox Arena was one of the big reasons the Patriots lost 56-51 to LJCD, snapping their San Diego section-best 19-game winning streak. But last night, Carter shot 7-of-9 from behind the arc, and finished by scoring a team-high 23 points.  Christian had led by as many as five late in the game but a three-pointer by Chris Robinson with 18 seconds to play brought LJCD to within one, 58-57.  After Brown hit one of two free throws with 12.7 seconds left, the Torres had one last chance, but Rashawn Allen's three-point try with three seconds remaining was short.    Tim Brown a 6-foot-4 senior forward for Christian scored 19 points, 13 coming after intermission. He pulled down nine rebounds and was credited with a handful of steals, three of which directly led to baskets.  The Patriots also played well defensively, forcing LJCD to take 19 attempts from beyond the three-point line to hit 10. Earlier this year the sharp-shooting Torres had 20 treys in one game.  Allen's 23, Chris Robinson's 13 and Cesar DonJuan's 11 led LJCD.

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