SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO, Ca. – The St. John Bosco High basketball team – seven days away from a Trinity League rematch with unbeaten Mater Dei – took care of some business in South Orange County Thursday night.
Coach Matt Dunn’s Braves went on a 16-1 run to start the second quarter, built a 20-point advantage at intermission and never led by fewer than 10 points in the second half while coasting to a 66-50 victory over the JSerra Lions.
St. John Bosco, No. 7 in this week’s BurlisonOnBasketball “21 for 2021”, improved to 15-2 overall and 6-2 in Trinity play.
Six-foot-five guard Scotty Washington (pictured) – possibly the best unsigned and uncommitted (for a college) senior in Southern California – led the Braves with 23 points on six of nine from the field (including four 3s) and seven of eight on free throws to go with four rebounds, three assists and three steals.
Teammates Lamaj Lewis (14 points, nine rebounds and three assists) and juniors Chris Estrada (12 points and eight rebounds) and Jeremiah Nyarko (12 points and five rebounds) also scored in double figures.
The third senior starter, guard Hunter Richardson, need a nice job of getting his team into half-court offense and of defending on the perimeter.
Senior guard Max Bowman led the Lions (11-10 and 3-5) with 16 points, including four 3s.
Dunn’s team can’t look too far ahead to the May 20 game in Bellflower against Mater Dei (4 p.m.).
There’s a lot of on-court work to be taken care of beforehand, via games with Moore League teams Long Beach Poly (Friday at Mater Dei), Long Beach Jordan (home/Monday) and a Trinity clash at Orange Lutheran (Tuesday).
At 8-0 in the Trinity, Mater Dei would have to drop its Tuesday game at Santa Margarita and lose to the Braves – with St. John Bosco winning its final two – to share the title with the Braves.
But, regardless of how the Trinity standouts shake out, the Thursday game will help dictate the shape of the CIF Southern Section’s eight-team Open Division Playoff field when it is released next weekend.
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