CIF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REGIONAL PLAYOFFS
BOYS BASKETBALL SEMIFINALS
Saturday
DIVISION I
Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks (20-7) at Crean Lutheran (24-6), 6 p.m.
Outlook: Notre Dame and Crean Lutheran went 0-3 in pool play in the CIF Southern Section Open Division playoffs. Notre Dame, seeded third in the SoCal Division I regional, defeated San Marcos 75-50 in the first round and St. Anthony 66-60 in the second round. Notre Dame senior guard Ben Shtolzberg scored 25 points against St. Anthony and was 13 of 14 at the free-throw line. Second-seeded Crean Lutheran has been short-handed in the regional playoffs, with either 7-foot senior center James Agany or 6-10 senior forward Koat Keat out of the lineup. The Saints managed to beat Cathedral Catholic 63-60 in the first round and La Costa Canyon 68-50 in the second round. Crean sophomore guard Vyctorious Miller scored 26 points against La Costa Canyon. The CIF Southern California Regional finals are Tuesday at host-school sites. The SoCal Regional champions advance to the CIF State Championships in Sacramento on March 11 and 12.
DIVISION II
Rancho Cucamonga (29-6) at Foothill (29-3), 6 p.m.
Outlook: Foothill is coming off of a “game of the year” type of win, a 96-95 triple-overtime victory over Carlsbad in the second round of the regional playoffs. Junior guard Carlo Billings scored 25 points with 13 rebounds for Foothill. The Knights, the top seed in the Division II regional, beat Francis Parker 67-59 in the first round. Foothill lost to Long Beach Poly in the CIF-SS 2AA semifinals. Rancho Cucamonga, seeded 13th in the 16-team regional bracket, won 61-57 at Mt. Whitney in the first round, and won 67-65 at Bakersfield Christian in overtime in the second round. The Cougars won the CIF-SS Division 3AA championship, beating Rancho Verde 67-66 as freshman Aaron Glass and junior Shadale Knight scored 21 points each.
Foothill guard Jacob Horton, right, drives to the basket around Canyon guard Emerson Marks, left, in a Crestview League game at Foothill High School in Santa Ana on Tuesday, February 1, 2022. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
Edison (28-5) at Los Altos (25-6), 6 p.m.
Outlook: Edison and Los Altos lost in the CIF-SS semifinals and took advantage of another opportunity to advance in the CIF Southern California Regional playoffs. Edison lost to La Mirada in the CIF-SS 2A semifinals. In the regional playoffs, the 11th-seeded Chargers defeated Mission Bay 64-63 in the first round and Birmingham 59-50 in the second round. Seniors Tyler Hampton and Trey Wilborn scored 23 points and 17 points, respectively, against Birmingham. Los Altos lost to eventual champion Village Christian in the 2AA semifinals. The second-seeded Conquerors defeated La Jolla Country Day 64-35 in the first round of regional play, and La Mirada 55-37 in the second round.
DIVISION V
La Quinta (21-10) at Fontana (27-5), 6 p.m.
Outlook: La Quinta finished second in the Garden Grove League. The Aztecs qualified for the CIF State playoffs by advancing to the CIF-SS 5A semifinals in which they lost to Riverside Prep by 19 points. Fontana defeated Riverside Prep by 27 points in the 5A championship game. La Quinta, seeded 12th in the Division V regional, advanced to the semifinals by defeating Rosamond 65-59 in the first round and Villanova Prep 61-60 in the second round. Fontana, seeded ninth, beat Northview 53-40 in the first round and Harbor Teacher 49-45 in the second round. Fontana is 12-2 at home.
GIRLS BASKETBALL SEMIFINALS
Saturday
DIVISION I
Windward (21-10) at Rosary (17-9), 7 p.m.
Outlook: Rosary went 1-2 in pool play in the CIF Southern Section Open Division, including a 60-58 home win over Windward on Feb. 19. Windward was 0-3 in CIF-SS Open Division pool play. Rosary, seeded No. 1 in the Division I regional playoffs, had a first-round bye before beating Viewpoint 56-42 in the second round. Royals senior guard Kaylee Byon signed with Utah Valley University. Sophomore forward Allison Clarke led Rosary with 21 points against Viewpoint. The Royals are 8-0 at home.
Rosary’s Allison Clarke, right, tries to drive around Mater Dei forward Soleil Montrose, left, in Santa Ana on Thursday, January 13, 2022. (Photo by Paul Rodriguez, Contributing Photographer)
Bishop Montgomery (19-6) at Orangewood Academy (23-9), 7 p.m.
Outlook: Orangewood Academy was 1-2 in CIF-SS Open Division pool play. The Spartans’ Open Division win was over Bishop Montgomery 54-50 on Feb. 19. Bishop Montgomery was 0-3 in the CIF-SS Open Division. Bishop Montgomery beat Orangewood Academy 75-65 on Nov. 30. Orangewood Academy, seeded No. 2 in the Division I regional playoffs, defeated Mount Miguel 62-48 in the first round and Granada Hills Charter 42-30 in the second round. Bishop Montgomery defeated El Camino 57-43 in the first round of the regional playoffs and defeated Camarillo 67-49 in the second round. Orangewood junior forward Jayionne Brown is averaging 14 points a game. She scored 29 points with 14 rebounds in the win over Granada Hills Charter. Orangewood senior guard Hanna Stines is scoring 13 points a game. Bishop Montgomery’s high-scoring, 6-3 senior forward Chloe Williams, who signed with the University of Tulsa, scored 21 points in the Knights’ win over El Camino.
Related Articles
Orange County girls athlete of the week: Jayionne Brown, Orangewood Academy
La Quinta boys basketball continues surprising run in CIF state playoffs
Crean Lutheran, Foothill, La Quinta boys basketball teams playing for CIF SoCal Regional titles
Previews: Orangewood Academy, Sage Hills girls basketball teams in CIF SoCal Regional finals
Boys and girls basketball playoffs: Saturday’s scores from CIF SoCal Regional semifinals, Tuesday’s finals
DIVISION II
Sage Hill (24-10) at Ontario Christian (31-4), 5 p.m.
Outlook: Sage Hill lost to Orange Lutheran in the CIF-SS Division 2AA championship game. In the regional playoffs, the sixth-seeded Lightning beat Nipomo 52-41 in the first round and Long Beach Poly 42-39 in the second round. Zoie Lamkin’s 3-pointer with five seconds remaining provided the margin of victory against Poly. Ontario Christian lost to Santiago of Corona 69-65 in the CIF-SS Division 2A final last week. In the regional playoffs, the second-seeded Knights defeated Del Norte 67-53 in the first round and Pacifica Christian 69-58 in the second round. Junior guard Chloe Briggs scored 40 points with nine rebounds in the win over Pacifica Christian. Sage Hill beat Ontario Christian in the CIF-SS Division 3AA championship game last season.