sandiego finals from saturday

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SoCalHoops High School News

San Diego Section Finals--Better Late
Than Never--(March 19, 1999)

We managed to get some details from the U-T about the San Diego Section Finals which were played Saturday at the Cox Arena on the campus of San Diego State. Since the State Regional brackets are out, these results won't surprise anyone, but if you're trying to find out about some of the teams that will be matched up against the Central, Southern and LA City Section teams in tonight's Quarterfinals of the State Southern Regionals, they will be useful. Here's what we know:

Division I

Bonita Vista 75, Southwest 62

In the first-ever championship matchup between two teams from the Metro League, senior forward Lamar Robson scored a game-high 29 points and second-seeded Bonita Vista beat top-seeded Southwest 75-62 Saturday night in the CIF-San Diego Section Division I championship at Cox Arena. Bonita Vista handed Southwest just its second loss of the season. The Barons are the only team to beat the Raiders this season. In the teams' last meeting at Bonita Vista, a game won by Southwest, the 6-foot-3 Robson was limited to just two points. It was the first CIF basketball title in school history for the Barons, who jumped out to a 20-10 lead after the opening quarter before taking a 39-33 advantage to the locker room at the break. That edge ballooned to 51-36 over the first four minutes of the third quarter as Bonita Vista went on a 10-0 run, a breakout spurred by six points from Robson. Still, Robson, who also contributed 12 rebounds, was far from a one-man show. All-county guard Roy Morris added 15 points while pulling down 12 boards. Southwest, which was led by senior forward Mike Holper's 24 points, never led after taking a 6-4 advantage in the early going. Southwest was outrebounded 35-21.

Division II

Orange Glen 74, San Diego Serra 45

Orange Glen coach Mark Decker knew that his team had to stop Serra's top two offensive players, James Profit and Kim Valenzuela. And that's exactly what his Patriots did, holding the two to individual season lows. In winning the CIF-San Diego Section Division II title 74-45 on Saturday night at Cox Arena, the Patriots held Profit to six points and Valenzuela to five, and nothing after the first quarter. The two had averaged a combined 39.1 points coming in. The win was the 18th straight for Orange Glen (25-5). The Conquistadors (19-8) entered the game winners of eight straight. With the Southern California Regionals starting on Tuesday, the Patriots may have their best basketball ahead of them. The defensive effort was balanced by the individual offensive effort of center John Masnica, who had a game-high 24 points and 14 rebounds. Masnica was particularly dominant early. He had 11 points and four blocked shots in lifting Orange Glen to a 16-9 first-quarter edge. The Patriots led 32-22 at halftime and erased any hopes of a Serra comeback when they outscored the Conquistadors 25-10 in the third quarter. Orange Glen's Isaiah Orange added 13 points, including several highlight plays off of lobs and fastbreaks.

Division III

USDHS 52, St. Augustine 50

Adam Olson accidently knocked out St. Augustine and teammate Kam Walton with a desperate field goal as just one tick remained on the clock in the CIF-San Diego Section Division III championship game Saturday night at Cox Arena. Olson's four-foot jumper right before the buzzer gave USDHS an exciting 52-50 victory, handing the Dons their sixth straight section championship. But after taking the shot, Olson crashed into Walton sending him to the floor with a cut above the right eye as the Dons faithful tempered their celebration with concern. USDHS (19-8) also had to play this one without guard Mike Malloy, whose badly sprained ankle will need a miracle for him to return for the Southern California Regionals, starting Tuesday. Walton finally got to his feet and somewhat sheepishly got medical attention. There was no cure for the Saints (20-8). USDHS may have benefited from what at first looked like a disaster. After St. Augustine's Jamaal Williams tied the game with a field goal at the 35-second mark, the Dons worked the clock. With six seconds to play, Olson drove for the basket but appeared either to walk or get tied up. The officials called the latter, but USDHS retained the ball on the possession arrow. St. Augustine's Andre Porter made up for an off-game in Cox Arena last year, scoring 16 points, including an NBA three-pointer that tied the game at 46-46 with 1:16 to play. Saints coach Mike Haupt accepted blame for the loss. "I let us down," said Haupt. "We didn't adjust to their defensive switches -- it was my fault for not seeing that." Actually, both teams had their chances but wouldn't let the lead become more than seven at any point in the game. Chris Walton added 15 points for USDHS and cousin Kam dominated the boards with 13 rebounds. Nate Staggs filled in for Malloy and scored seven points while pulling down seven rebounds. USDHS coach Jim Tomey was happy and relieved. "This team has overcome more adversity and injury than any of them," said Tomey. "We slapped and fought our way through. I like this more than any of the other championships."

Divsion IV

Horizon 59, Bishop's 45

Using an 11-0 run midway through the third quarter, Horizon beat Bishop's 59-45 to add a CIF-San Diego Section Division IV title on Saturday night at Cox Arena to four straight Division V crowns. Horizon proved too quick and explosive for the Knights. Nothing new there as Horizon (23-2) has earned the state's No. 1 ranking in this division by beating all comers except for lightning-quick Long Beach Poly and tall Mater Dei, both Division I schools. Even though Horizon had defeated Bishop's twice earlier, each game had been a war. This was no different. With Mike Hausmann (23 points, 11 rebounds) dominating inside, Bishop's (16-13) matched Horizon basket for basket, free throw for free throw until two minutes into the third quarter. Four minutes later, a three-point field goal by Bernard and free throw by Ron Coleman polished off an 11-0 run for Horizon. Bishop's never recovered. Horizon did not permit Bishop's to score more than four consecutive points once the lead was in double figures. Bernard said the Panthers started slowly because of nerves, but once they got into their game, they got much more aggressive. The Panthers, winners of 16 straight games, went on a 20-12 roll in the third
quarter with their usual balance. By game's end, Bernard's 16 led four players in double-figure scoring. Watts, with his unstoppable inside drives, scored 14; 6-foot-8 Ron Coleman tossed in 11 and collected nine rebounds; Trevor Jensen added 10 points. And the Panthers may not be finished.

Division V

Christian 62, La Jolla Country Day 50

Christian High hadn't been to the section finals in more than three years, but they made it again on Saturday, and they won, 62-50 over La Jolla Country Day. Christian cruised to a 15-point lead at halftime before holding on in the fourth quarter, and pocketed its seventh section crown in the CIF-San Diego Section Division V title game at Cox Arena. The top-seeded Patriots improved to 23-5, while the Torres, who have been victimized in four of the last five Division V championship games, fell to 20-7. Christian, which led 32-17 at the break, survived a furious rally by La Jolla Country Day, which opened the final quarter with a 17-0 run to cut the deficit to 52-44. The Patriots were powered by a game-high 24 points from senior guard Nick Gonzales, while senior forward Justin Middleton paced the Torres with 18.