IIAA228.htm

SoCal High School & Prep Report

Southern Section Playoffs: Division II-AA
Semifinal Results--(February 28, 1998)

As you can probably tell from the title, only two games were played last night in this division. Compton defeated Brea Olinda, and will advance to the finals against Santa Margarita, which defeated Inglewood in the other semi final. Second-seeded Santa Margarita will play top-seeded Compton in the final Thursday at UC Irvine. The final, which will be played Thursday, was switched from next Saturday to accommodate a live telecast by Fox Sports West 2.

Division II-AA Semifinals

Game 1: Compton 77, Brea Olinda 54

David Hamilton tried not to get overly excited after the win. They still have one more game - the CIF championship contest, Thursday at the UC Irvine Bren Center against No. 2 seed Santa Margarita. Last night, Compton scored 16 unanswered fourth-quarter points to break open the game. Brea Olinda (24-5) started out cold, connecting on two of 11 from the field in the first quarter. By hitting seven of eight free throws, the Wildcats did stay in the game, trailing 18-11. The Wildcats were able to cut the lead to three twice in the second quarter before Compton (26-5) took a 34-26 lead at the break. Brea Olinda found its shooting touch to open the second half with McMillian hitting a three-pointer and Reid Carlson (19 points) and Rasuli Webster scoring baskets to reduce the Compton lead to one. Maddox' basket for Compton followed by McMillian's three-pointer knotted the game at 36. Brea Olinda, behind most of the night, tied the score, 36-36, on a three-point shot by Chris McMillian midway in the third quarter. Compton came right back with baskets by Tito Maddox and David Hamilton to regain a four-point lead. A foul and technical by Hamilton put Moore on the free-throw line but he connected on one of four tries and threw away a pass in what could have been at least a six-point scoring opportunity for the Wildcats who had hit 11 of 14 free throws up to that point. A steal by Moore and basket by Kyle Dood reduced the Compton lead to 40-39. A three-point shot by Maddox, who finished with 20 points helped Compton finish the third quarter with a 7-2 run and a 47-41 lead. Compton then gradually built a 57-47 lead in the fourth quarter before going on the 16-0 run to put the game away. Hamilton, who had been sitting down since picking up a foul and a technical with 3:51 left in the third quarter, came off the bench to ignite a 23-4 run. The 6-foot-9 junior, who finished with 14 points and 20 rebounds, stole the ball to set up Moore's 3-pointer and then scored on a pair of follow shots to give Compton a 54-43 lead with 5:33 left. Three minutes later it was 73-47.

It was a team effort for the Tarbabes, but nobody played bigger than 5'-8" DeAndre Moore. The Vanderbilt-signee point guard scored 25 points, hitting 6 of 14 from the field and 10 of 12 from the free throw line, dished out five assists and grabbed three steals. But it was Moore's defensive effort on Wyoming-bound point guard Chris McMillian that was the key. McMillian didn't score a field goal in the first half, missing all six of his shots. He finally hit a couple of 3-pointers in the third quarter, but was 2 of 12 when Moore was in the game and finished 11 points below his 25-point average. Tito Maddox came off the bench to contribute 20 points, making 9 of 14 from the field, and five assists.

Compton has three starters heading to major colleges with 6'-9" center David Hamilton going to Auburn, 6'-8" forward Milton Riley going to Washington State, and Deandre Moore, who finished with 25 points, going to Vanderbilt.

Game 2: Santa Margarita 83, Inglewood 57

Santa Margarita guard T.J. Williams scored a game-high 21 points to lead the Eagles over Inglewood, 83-57, in a Southern Section Division II-AA boys' basketball semifinal Friday night at Dana Hills High School. Williams was among five Santa Margarita players who scored in double figures.Santa Margarita seemed more prepared; their 1-2-2 matchup zone pushed the Sentinels (26-3) into their weakness, outside shooting, while Inglewood never was able to exploit its quickness advantage. The Eagles were tough on the boards, allowing Inglewood only a handful of offensive rebounds. And, perhaps most important, Santa Margarita seemed a bit more ready to play. The Eagles made 10 three-pointers, and started the behind-the-arc barrage early as Forehan-Kelly hit a pair in the first quarter. Santa Margarita led at the end of the quarter, 21-18. Carson Palmer, who quarterbacked the Eagles' football team to the Southern Section Division V title,
hit two threes in the second quarter, and Santa Margarita took a 41-32 lead into halftime. Inglewood stayed close for much of the game, pulling within five points, 43-38, early in the third quarter, but the Eagles pulled away again and led by 14, 60-46, at the end of the period.

But Santa Margarita went on a 17-8 run in the last four minutes of the fourth quarter to take control. With 2:07 left in the game, Williams hit his fourth three-point shot of the game to seal the victory for Santa Margarita (27-2). Williams made four of eight three-point shots and had five assists. The Eagles, Sea View League champions, came out aggressively on offense early and took a 21-18 first-quarter lead. With 7:06 to play in the second quarter, Santa Margarita guard Jake Rohe made a three-pointer, pulling up well beyond the arc, to give the Eagles a 26-20 lead. They extended the lead to 11 points, before Inglewood got consecutive three-pointers by Bradley Jackson to make it 31-26. But with less than a minute left in the half, Santa Margarita forward Carson Palmer made the Eagles' sixth three-point shot of the half, to extend their lead to 41-32 at halftime. Jenkins had 16 points and a game-high 11 rebounds for Inglewood (21-6). All five starting seniors scored 10 or more for the Eagles. Craig Rice and Jake Rohe had 14 apiece, and Dekker McKeever and Ryan Forehan-Kelly both scored 10.