Frank Burlison

LAGUNA NIGUEL – After slogging through seven games of the toughest “real high school” sectional and regional playoff fields in the country, nothing the North had to offer seemed must of an obstacle for the Eastvale Roosevelt Mustangs in Saturday night’s State Open Division boys’ championship game in Saturday.

And that was the case, as Coach Steve Singleton’s club dropped the Brayden Burries hammer on San Francisco Riordan, 80-60, in the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento.

The Mustangs got a State Open Division final record 44 points from the Burries – one of six California-based McDonald’s All-Americans from the Class of 2025, two of those residing at Prolific Prep School in Napa – after he had dropped 28 on Harvard-Westlake (March 8) and 37 against Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks (Tuesday night) in the South Regional to earn the trip North.

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The top seeds in the Southern Regional’s Open and D-I divisions held off determined, down-to-the wire challenges Tuesday night to earn slots in the California Interscholastic Federation title games this weekend in Sacramento’s Golden 1 Center.

*In Eastvale, Brayden Burries hit a go-ahead 3-pointer from the left wing with 1:08 remaining to help No. 1 Roosevelt (34-2) edge third seed Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks, 79-76, in a rematch of the CIF Southern Section’s Open championship game 10 nights before in Ontario’s Toyota Arena.

The victory earned Burries – who finished with 37 points – and the rest of the Mustangs a pop at 29-1, North Region-winner San Francisco Riordan (52-40 over visiting De La Salle of Concord Tuesday night) Saturday night at 8 o’clock in the Sacramento Kings’ arena.

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EASTVALE – A couple of Tuesday night rematches of CIF Southern Section playoff games will determine which boys basketball teams will represent the South in next Friday and Saturday night’s Division I and Open championship games in Sacramento.

Redondo Union (28-5), following its 72-66 against visiting and Bay League rival Mira Costa, travels to the San Fernando Valley Tuesday for the D-I final against Sierra Canyon (25-7).

The Trailblazers, who needed two overtimes to beat visiting JSerra, 68-64, knocked off Redondo Union in overtime, 69-66, during a Feb.

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REDONDO BEACH – Twenty-four hours after a couple of dandy State Southern Regional Open Division semifinals were set for Saturday night, the same thing happened in the Division I boys’ basketball playoff action.

The No.’s 1 (Sierra Canyon, 78-45 vs. Santa Barbara), 2 (Redondo Union, 89-66 over Los Alamitos) and 3 (JSerra, pounding Carlsbad, 79-54) seeds rolled to wins Thursday night, while No. 7 Mira Costa held off No. 15 San Diego Torrey Pines, 44-39.

Those results set the table for Saturday night’s games pitting JSerra at Sierra Canyon, and Mira Costa traveling to Redondo Union.

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STUDIO CITY – The Harvard-Westlake High boys’ basketball team spotted visiting St. John Bosco the game’s first seven points and finished with 20 turnovers in a State Open Southern Regional quarterfinal on the Wolverines’ homecourt Wednesday night.

Ultimately, though, the hosts’ half-court defense was too stout, the playmaking of 6-foot-8, McDonald’s All-American Nikolas  Khamenia too fined-tuned and the Wolverines’ jump shooting too crisp for the visiting Braves, 70-55.

The win against the defending State Division I champions (who finished 26-7) advanced Coach Dave Rebibo’s squad (31-2) another step on the road to Sacramento and a March 15 opportunity to win a third consecutive State Open crown.

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