LA VERNE, Ca. – “Senior Night” had a two-fold meaning at Damien High Monday night.
With the last regular-season home game on tap with its Baseline League clash on tap a few minutes later in the school’s Athletic Center, the Spartans’ program honored its senior class in a ceremony.
And, appropriately enough, four of those seniors had big roles in their 59-45 victory over the visiting Eagles.
Class of 2022 starters Spivey Word, R.J. Smith and Kaleb Smith combined for 13 of their team’s 15 fourth-quarter points to help the Spartans snap a nine-game losing streak to Etiwanda while bringing a halt to the Eagles’ 26-game Baseline winning streak, as well.
Etiwanda (18-6 overall and 7-1 in league) and Damien (23-2 and 6-1) seem likely to share the Baseline title but each has multiple pitfalls during the final week of the regular season.
The Eagles close with home games vs. Rancho Cucamonga (Tuesday) and Upland (Friday).
The Spartans are on the road against Chino Hills (Tuesday), Los Osos (Wednesday) and Rancho Cucamonga (Friday).
Damien dropped a 45-39 decision at Etiwanda on Jan. 21, a game in which University of Colorado-bound R.J. Smith (pictured) – one of the most prolific jump shooters in the west – missed his first eight shots from the field and whose only field goal came on a 3 with 32.9 seconds to play.
But he hit a mid-range jumper from the right wing barely three minutes into play Monday night, then drilled couple of 3s in the second quarter to help his team go up at intermission. 28-16.
Smith hit four free throws in the final 1:41 as the visitors never got closer than to within five points early in the fourth quarter after trailing by as many as 16 in the third quarter.
“I did a much better job of getting to my spots (for shots) tonight,” Smith said afterward, with mother Monica and sister Kennedy (who attends Etiwanda and is the No. 1 sophomore in the West) nearby.
“They know our offense so well that we have to cut and move even harder (to get open). We executed and I got into a better rhythm.”
Smith that he and his teammates know that the victory over Etiwanda can’t be the “end-all” victory the rest of the season – not with three league games yet to play before the Feb. 11 start of the CIF Southern Section playoffs and their (likely) spot in the eight-team Open Division bracket.
“We have to stay healthy and focused for those next three (Baseline) games he said,” and then get ready for the playoffs.”
The 6-foot-8, UC Riverside-bound Kaleb Smith (no relation) scored 15 points with eight rebounds; the 6-1 Word led the team with 16 points (including a steal and lay-up that pushed the Spartans’ advantage to nine points with 3:43 remaining and a layup – off a nifty pass from fellow senior Brady Xie – to beat the shot-block buzzer a minute later to get the lead back to nine points.
Junior forward Jimmy Oladokun Jr. scored 10 points to go with eight rebounds and two blocked shots for Damien.
Senior left hander Jacob Barcelo led Etiwanda with 12 points – all in the third quarter – while junior point guard Jimmy Baker Jr. added 10 points, four assists and three steals.
The loss – coupled with the defeat against Las Vegas Durango three days earlier – probably pushed the Eagles out of the Open pool and into a likely high (Top 4ish) seed in the Division I bracket.
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