BELLFLOWER, CA – Despite its 7-0 start, the St. John Bosco High basketball team hasn’t quite yet clinched at least a share of the Trinity League championship.
But the Braves took a bold step in that direction Wednesday night – even after trailing the visiting Mater Dei Monarchs by 21 points at intermission.
Coach Matt Dunn’s team methodically lopped 18 points off the deficit while limiting the visitors to five third-quarter points.
The Braves – by way of a 3-pointer from senior center Xinyi Li (and set up by a pass from sophomore guard Elzie Harrington – took their first lead since 90 seconds into the game (at 4-2) with 5:28 remaining at 48-45, and then pulled away for a 65-57 victory in front of capacity crowd during the host’s “Senior Night” and last regular-season home game.
SJB (No. 5 in this week’s BurlisonOnBasketball SoCal Top 25) can clinch a tie for the Trinity title with win at JSerra Friday night.
And the Braves (22-3 overall and 7-0 in league) will take it out victory over visiting Orange Lutheran (5-2).
The teams played in Santa Ana on Jan. 6, with the visitors prevailing, 67-64, to hand the Monarchs their first home loss to a league opponent since 1998.
And the victory in the return match Wednesday night was their fifth in a row over Monarchs on their home court, and sixth overall in the eight seasons of the “Dunn Era” at SJB.
With the loss, the Monarchs dropped to 18-6 and 3-4. That means they’ve been eliminated from any chance for at least sharing a league title for the first time in 35 years.
I wouldn’t have just tossed out those numbers and that trivia to you if the Braves hadn’t made the most of the 10-minute intermission that began with Mater Dei in front, 40-19.
After Jack Turner started things consecutive layups for the Braves, the Monarchs closed the half on 40-15 run.
During that stretch the Braves committed seven turnovers and missed 22 of 27 from the floor.
On the other side of the floor, the Monarchs’ post players, senior Zack Davidson, and freshman Brannon Martinsen, were pounded the Braves for a combined 18 points, eight rebounds, four blocked shots and four assists (three by Martinsen).
After watching his team turn the ball over seven times and, in essence, committed at least than more “turnovers” by way of “rushed”, aka, “selfish” shot attempts not more than a pass or two into the half-court offense, Dunn didn’t have to go maniacal in the locker room to point out why the Brave had dug themselves a 21-point deficit against a program has played quite well with leads during Gary McKnight’s 41 years as its coach.
“It was all on our offense, and they (his players) knew it,” Dunn said afterward.
“We were terrible (by way of shot selection and offensive execution). And, because of it, we didn’t give our defense a chance to guard them in half court.”
Those turnovers and quick “misses” enabled the Monarchs to get the ball into transition – often against back-peddling and scrambling defenders – which they exploited, despite eight turnovers of their own, to hit 16 of 25 field-goal attempts, including four threes.
When play resumed, the Braves were more prudent in their shot selection – namely, more “trusting” of their offensive scheme and, more importantly, one another – and methodically chipped away at the deficit.
They were eight of 12 from the field (including two 3s from Turner and another Li), and four of five on free throws) and forced five turnovers while limiting the Monarchs to two of 12 from the field to lop 18 points off their deficit in the third quarter.
They kept the pressure on the ball-handlers and passers in the fourth quarter, limiting the visitors to two buckets in 11 shots from the field with the Monarchs managing to stay reasonably close by hitting eight of 10 free throws.
Six-four Elzie Harrington didn’t have an exceptional shooting performance (seven of 18 from the field, including two 3s, and three of five on free throws).
But he showed why he is among the region’s top sophomore “point-guard types”, directly the offense near-flawlessly in the fourth quarter for four assists.
Turner finished with a game-high 22 points (Davidson scored 21), including nine in the fourth quarter, while Harrington had seven assists to go with his 19 points.
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