Tuesday’s Semi Final Preview – Orange County Register

CIF-SS SEMIFIALS Basketball Boys

PARTS 1

ST. JOHN BOSCO (September 22) VS JSERRA (September 18)

Where when: JSerra High School, Tuesday, 7 p.m.

Opinion: St. John Bosco and JSerra split two Trinity League games in the regular season. JSerra beat St. The Lions’ 65-56 victory over St. Francis on Friday in the quarterfinals. He’s been player of the season all season for the Lions, placing 4th in the top 25. Orange County’s newest JSerra, 4th in the six-team Trinity League and qualifying for the round knockout as a major team, beating Oak Park 63-44 in the first round and second seed Rolling Hills Prep 72-44 in the second round. Jack Turner of St. John Bosco (6-4, So., G) scored 25 points with nine rebounds in the Braves’ 73-64 win over Loyola in the quarterfinals. The Braves, who finished third in the Trinity League, beat Culver City 72-65 in the first round and Fairmont Prep 64-60 in the second round. The winner will play Friday’s Division 1 title match against the winner of the St. Bernard and St. Anthony. That championship game, like all CIF-SS championship games, will be played at a venue chosen by the home team that can choose its on-site gym for the game. JSerra and St. John Bosco, like all CIF-SS semi-finalists, qualified for the CIF Southern California Region starting March 1.

BLOCK 2AA

LONG BEACH POLY (21-5) VS. FEET (27-2)

Where when: High Foothill, Tuesday, 7pm

Opinion: Long Beach Poly won 10-0 in the Moore League to claim its 16th consecutive league title. In the knockout round, the Jackrabbits beat Villa Park 51-43 in the first round, Simi Valley 48-46 in the second round and Crespi 58-48 in the quarterfinals. Jovani Ruff’s Poly (6-5,, Fr., G) scored a top 18 in the match against Crespi. He scored 19 points in the win over Simi Valley. Long Beach Poly has won 21 CIF-SS men’s basketball championships, most recently in 2014. No. 4 seed Foothill, No. 11 of Orange County’s top 25, shares the Crestview League championship with Canyon . In the playoffs, the Knights beat Palms Springs 64-41 in the first round, Marina 75-58 in the second, and Cajon 58-49 in the quarterfinals. Cruz Billings (5-8, Sr., G) scored 19 points against Marina and 18 points against Cajon. Foothill’s only two CIF-SS men’s basketball finals resulted in wins, in 2010 and ’15. The winner plays Friday in the 2AA final against the winner of the Village Christian-Los Altos semi-final.

BLOCK 2A

ST. PAUL (September 22) VS SAN JUAN HILLS (April 25)

Where when: San Juan Hills High, Tuesday, 7 p.m.

Opinion: St. Paul, the champion of the Camino Real League, in the playoffs beat Cathedral 67-49 in the first round, Hillcrest 66-60 in the second round and El Dorado 49-23 in the quarterfinals. San Juan Hills will make their first appearance in the CIF-SS men’s basketball semifinals. The top-seeded Stallions, the Sea View League champions and the No. 8 in Orange County’s top 25, had a bye game in the first round. They beat Aquinas 78-54 in the second round and Thousand Oaks 70-46 in the quarterfinals. Mark Reichner (6-2, Sr., G) leads the Stallions with 15 points per game. He scored a team-high 21 in the win over Thousand Oaks. The winner will play in Friday’s division championship match against the La Mirada-Edison semi-final winner.

LA MIRADA (18-13) VS EDISON (April 26)

Where when: Edison High, Tuesday, 7 p.m

Opinion: Premier League champions La Mirada beat Beckman 95-64 in the first round, Tesoro 52-50 in the second and Calabasas 57-54 in extra time in the quarter-finals. The Matadors are looking to make their first appearance in the CIF-SS Men’s Basketball Championship game. Edison won the Surf League championship, the second outright championship in the school’s boys’ basketball history. Second-seeded Chargers, number nine of Orange County’s top 25, beat Elsinore 75-57 in the second round and Pacifica Christian 57-54 in the quarterfinals. Edison’s Trey Wilborn (6-5, Sr., F) scored 15 points to lead an equalizing effort for the Chargers against Pacifica Christian. Tyler Hampton (6-4, Sr., F) is a steady contributor to Edison. The winner plays in the 2A final on Friday against the winner of the St. Paul-San Juan Hills.

Fractions 3A

DANA HILLS (18-9) VS LONG BEACH MILLIKAN (15-17)

Where when: Long Beach Millikan High, Tuesday, 7pm

Opinion: Dana Hills finished third in the four-team Sea View League. The Dolphins, number 21 in Orange County’s top 25, placed third. In the knockout round, they beat San Jacinto 73-33 in the first round, Corona 57-35 in the second round and Bishop Amat 55-52 in the quarterfinals. Adam Pellini (6-5, Sr. F) scored 19 points against Bishop Amat. Collin Haugh (5-9, Fr., G) scored 14 goals against Bishop Amat. Dana Hills did not play in a CIF-SS Men’s Basketball Championship game. Millikan finished 4th in the seven-team Moore League. The Rams beat AGBU/Canoga Park 51-46 in the first round of the playoffs, West Torrance 51-48 in the second round, and Highland 62-52 in the quarterfinals. Kamaury Washington (6-3, Sr., G) leads Millikan with 19 points a game. The championship opponent of the sixth game will be the winner of Bishop Diego-St. Pius / St. Semi-final winner Mattias.

SPACE 4AA

FULLERTON (16-14) VS. ARTESIA (April 26)

Where when: Artesia High, Tuesday, 7pm

Opinion: From 1922 to 1959, Fullerton was represented in five CIF Men’s Basketball Championship games. The Indians lost all five battles. Fullerton finished third, behind league champions Sonora and Sunny Hills, in the Freeway League. In the knockout round, the Indians beat Santiago 58-49 in the first round, Rio Mesa 62-45 in the second round and San Dimas 44-38 in extra time in the quarterfinals. Two of the top players for Fullerton are senior forward Zane Mustafa, 6 feet 6, and lower point guard Christian Hubbard. Top seed Artesia, 605 League champion, has won 12 in a row to reach the semi-finals, including a play-off win over Muir 65-45 in the first round, Burroughs/Redridgecrest 60-47 in the second round. second and Oakwood 57-53 in extra time in the quarterfinals. The winner advances to the championship game to play on Friday with the winner of the Garden Grove-Sunny Hills semifinals.

GARDEN GROVE (August 20) VS SUNNY HILLS (July 24)

Where when: Sunny Hills High, Tuesday, 7 p.m

Opinion: Garden Grove reached the semi-finals of the CIF-SS boys basketball tournament for the first time in the open school’s history in 1921. Golden West League champions Argonauts opened the knockout stages with a 50-49 win over Golden Valley and followed by 70-58 wins over Alhambra in the second round and 69-66 win against University into the quarterfinals. Senior keeper Miguel Ortega was the Argonauts’ top scorer all season. He scored 17 points in the quarter-final victory but it was Vidal Jimenez who had the highest title in the match with 20 points including 5 3-pointers. Sunny Hills finished second behind Sonora in the Freeway League. Placed third in the knockout round, the Lancers beat Perris 67-39 in the first round, Trinity Classical Academy 68-52 in the second round and Ontario Christian 63-51 in the quarterfinals. Dylan Lawson (6-5, Sr., F) and Chad Nguyen (5-9, Jr., G) are among the Lancers’ top two players. The winner advances to Friday’s championship game to play against the winner of the Fullerton-Artesia semi-final.

BLOCK 4A

WESTERN (September 17) VS EDGEWOOD (May 25)

Where when: Edgewood High, Tuesday, 7pm

Opinion: Western is shooting for the first ever CIF-SS men’s basketball final. The Pioneers, champions of the Orange League, beat Chadwick 56-47 in the first knockout round, Cate 48-47 in the second and St. Monica 57-47 in the quarterfinals. Western is led by Ahmad Hammouri (6-3, Sr., F) and Jameson Labasan (5-4, Sr., G). Miramonte League co-champion Edgwood in the knockout stages defeated St. Genevieve 79-49 in the first round, Moreno Valley 56-46 in the second and Indio 65-56 in the quarterfinals. The winner plays the winner of Tuesday’s semi-final, Valley Torah vs. Dos Pueblos, in the championship game on Friday.