Long Beach Poly men’s basketball team tops Foothill, advances to Division 2AA title game – Orange County Register
SANTA ANA – Long Beach Poly senior keeper Gabriel Cummings waited patiently for this moment, and when he got it, he made the most of it.
Cummings scored a game-high 25, including 16 in the third inning, to help Poly win 50-45 over Foothill in the CIF Southern Section 2AA semi-final on Tuesday night.
“I started to get cold. I was 0-4 in the first half. I just know my team needs me,” Cummings said. “Foothill is a great team. To win, everyone has to show and play at their best… I felt they were leaving me open so I just took the shots they gave me and I took them.”
Poly (May 22) will be competing at the Village Christian of Sun Valley for the 2AA Championship on Friday, February 25, at 7pm
Long Beach Poly senior guard Gabriel Cummings said the belt looked like an “ocean” as he dropped 16 points in a 3rd-round high 25 against Foothill. Poly wins 50-45. @ GabrielC21 @LBPolyHoop @BeachVarsity @ocvarsity pic.twitter.com/ND2m2YBpLO
– John W. Davis (@johnwdavis) February 23, 2022
Foothill (27-3) played basketball inspired from the opening game, taking a 6-0 lead, forcing Poly to take a break with 5:42 left in the first inning.
Long Beach Poly coach Shelton Diggs said: “It’s always good to be on the road, hostile environments. “We played well on the road.”
The Jackrabbits were able to regroup and take a 12-10 lead in the second quarter.
Long Beach Poly basketball coach Shelton Diggs said the Poly vs. @ocvarsity @BeachVarsity @LBPolyHoop pic.twitter.com/vAzyCiSFL3
– John W. Davis (@johnwdavis) February 23, 2022
At halftime, the Knights’ defense, fueled by the student section, pushed them into a 24-22 lead, following strong play from Foothill’s senior point guard Cruz Billings, who took the lead. scored all 10 points in the first half.
Foothill centre-back Braedyn Bernhard also had 10 points after half-time. The 6-foot-7 Bernhard, who finished with 16 points, has an internal size advantage over Poly senior striker Marcel Hayes, who is 6-foot-4.
Freshman defending Poly Jovani Ruff had 8 out of 10 points in the first half to get past the Jackrabbits.
It was a Cummings 3-pointer that put the Jackrabbits 25-24 to start the second half.
Another Cummings big 3 extended Poly’s lead to 30-24. Cummings continued his strong innings with one and one and one layup to take Poly to 35-26 with four minutes remaining in the third inning.
“(The rim) looks like an ocean. I can’t miss it,” explained Cummings, who scored 16 points in the third quarter.
“I’m really proud,” Diggs said. “He was our shooter all year. He was missing (in) the first half. We told him to always be confident. I trust you guys and he was able to be hot in the second half and he produced some great shots for us. ”
However, what was even more impressive than Jackrabbits’ attack was their defense, they only got 4 points in the first 5 minutes of the third round.
Meanwhile, the Knights fight back. Poly 42-39 lead into the fourth quarter.
Foothill coach Yousof Etemadi said the match meant a lot to the school and surrounding community, especially since the Knights had not played at home since the first round of the knockout round on Sunday. February 11th.
“We don’t dodge and avoid anyone,” Etemadi said of the Knights schedule. “We’ve had a pretty good team for a few years now, and we want to test them out soon. Our tournament is really tough and we want to prepare for the knockout round. ”
Foothill men’s basketball coach Yousof Etemadi believes his team’s defense will be the key to success against Long Beach Poly in the CIF Southern Section Division 2AA semifinals. @ocvarsity @BeachVarsity pic.twitter.com/lBdqj7SL3G
– John W. Davis (@johnwdavis) February 23, 2022
“We play together,” Etemadi continued. “The kids like each other. Great chemistry. We play together and we share the ball and we have another guy step up every night. Each person is an important part of what we do. ”
Before the game, Etemadi said that his team’s defense will be the difference compared to Poly.
In the 4th half, Foothill’s defense stood firm. Poly only scored eight points in the final eight minutes.
However, the Jackrabbits relied on their championship-level defense, picking up just six points in the final eight minutes of the game.
At the end of the fourth half, Foothill led 45-42 in a difficult dunk by senior keeper Jacob Horton.
The Knights took a 45-43 lead with 1:27 remaining when Ruff reached the free-throw line. The 6-foot-5 freshman made both free throws to end the game in 45th place.
Cummings hit a 3-pointer in less than a minute, taking Poly to 48-45.
Long Beach Poly senior guard Gabriel Cummings with 25 points, including this dagger ahead of Foothill is less than a minute away. Poly wins 50-45. @ GabrielC21 @LBPolyHoop @Coach_Reub @ Tshell20 pic.twitter.com/QlsHgGf1FUND
– John W. Davis (@johnwdavis) February 23, 2022
Poly senior guard Christian Watson scored 11 points, including two free throws with less than ten seconds left in the game, to seal the victory.
“We haven’t won anything yet,” Cummings explained. “We are going to the championship game, but we still have to win that game, so we have one more point to win that game and win the championship (CIF-SS Division 2AA) and take it home for Poly. . It’s been a few years since we won a win and I really wanted my senior year to mean something to Poly’s history. ”
https://www.ocregister.com/2022/02/22/long-beach-poly-boys-basketball-tops-foothill-advances-to-division-2aa-title-game/ Long Beach Poly men’s basketball team tops Foothill, advances to Division 2AA title game – Orange County Register
