RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA – They’re future college basketball programs may have been battling one another some 68 or so miles away in Westwood.
But, while UCLA eventually knocked off its USC counterpart in overtime Thursday night, a future Bruin and soon-to-be Trojan teammate to give their Santa Margarita High team to another playoff victory.
USC-bound Max Agbonkpolo (28) and Jake Kyman (22) – who signed with UCLA in November – combined for 50 points as the Eagles toppled El Cajon Foothills Christian, 76-66, in the second round of the State Southern Regional Division I playoffs.
Coach Jeff Reinert’s team improved to 25-10 in its pursuit of regional and state titles after winning a Southern Section championship by edging Chino Hills in overtime last Saturday at Cal Baptist University in Riverside.
The Eagles will take treks on the 241, 91 and 15 freeways Saturday to play top seed Etiwanda in a semifinal Saturday night at 6 o’clock.
The teams played more than two months ago, with Santa Margarita prevailing, 50-48, by way of a Kendall McHugh (PICTURED) buzzer-beating layup on Dec. 26 in a first-round game of the Classic at Damien.
The Eagles played each of their four games in the event without the 6-foot-8 Agbonkpolo, who was recovering from a bout of Mononucleosis.
Foothills Christian – the runner-up in the San Diego Open Division playoffs – scored the first five points Thursday night but Agbonkpolo, after missing his first two shots, scored 12 of his team’s first 15 points for a two-point edge after the first quarter.
Kyman – who took just one shot in the first quarter – scored six points in the second quarter while Agbonkpolo was grabbing four rebounds with a couple of assists and a blocked shot as the first half ended with the Eagles up, 33-26.
But Coach Brad Leaf’s Eagles (24-7) got a combined 21 points in the third quarter from the University of Montana-bound forward Derrick Carter-Hollinger (who finished with 27 points) and superb junior guard Yassine Gharram (19).
A bucket, while being fouled, a free throw by Carter-Hollinger tied the score at 41 with 3:16 to go in the quarter.
A buzzer-beating 10-footer by Kyman gave the Eagles a three-point edge after three quarters.
Kyman then scored 10 of his team’s 12 points to starter the final quarter, the last of those on consecutive 3s that pushed the advantage to 13 points with 4:50 to go.
Agbonkpolo scored 10 of the Eagles’ final 12 points.
Kyman hit nine of 12 shots and both free throws to go with eight rebounds and three assists.
Agbonkpolo hit 10 of 19 field goals and seven of eight free throws with 10 rebounds while senior point guard Kendall McHugh had nine points and eight assists.
Hey Frank, it’s Steve Colton. Coach McKnight asked me to send you Mater Dei’s season stats. I will do it first thing the morning. Is there a better email to send it to? Thanks.