REDONDO BEACH, Ca. – The St. John Bosco High Braves, in just their second game of the season, scored 31 first-quarter points en route to a 78-37 victory over San Gabriel Academy Wednesday night at Redondo Union High during the second day of the 72nd Ryse Williams/Pacific Shores boys’ basketball event.
The No. 2 squad in the BurlisonOnBasketball Top 30 got 17 points from junior guard Elzie Harrington (including a couple of spectacular slams) and 15 apiece from senior Jack Turner and sophomore Brandon McCoy.
The Braves, who hadn’t played since their Nov. 18 home victory over Long Beach Poly, are in Arizona Saturday evening to play one of the state’s best teams, Phoenix Sunnyslope, as part of the HoopHall West at Chaparral High in Scottsdale.
The Eagles, in their season-opener, got a team-high 13 points from 6-foot-10 freshman Mahamodou Diop — 12 of those via six rim-hammering dunks.
In the most compelling of the seven games played in Redondo’s main and auxiliary gymnasiums Wednesday, junior guard Gavin Hightower, trapped by three defenders near mid-court near the far sideline, hit a cutting Elijah Gelin with a stunning pass for the game-winning layup at the buzzer to give Windward a 55-53 victory over another of Southern California’s better teams, Santa Margarita.
Dartmouth-bound guard Cameron McNamee scored 25 for Santa Margarita while Hightower had 19 for the Wildcats.
In some of the other games played at the event Wednesday:
*Bishop Montgomery improved to 6-0 while edging Oakwood, 62-60, in the fourth overtime contest of the event’s first two days.
Junior guard Christian Hall scored 20 points for the Knights.
*The host Sea Hawks improved to 3-0 with their third lopsided victory Wednesday afternoon, 74-28 over Lawndale.
Redondo, which used 17 players (14 of those in the first quarter), got a game-high 20 points from freshman Chris Sanders.
*Senior guard Jacob Bayla (pictured) scored 19 second-half points to help Valley Christian hand St. Anthony its first loss in six games, 74-72.
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