Boys Basketball:
For the first time in nearly two decades, the Pasadena High School boys basketball program did not win a Pacific League championship.
To be fair to PHS coach Tony Brooks and his players, there was no room for error after the 14-game league schedule was cut in half, and COVID-19 has been an Achilles heel for the Bulldogs.
PHS did finish strong on Friday night.
The Bulldogs jumped to a 15-point lead at the half and cruised to a 57-38 victory at Muir.
Pasadena earned the league’s second seed.
Ethan Patterson scored a team-high 13 points for PHS, and that included three 3-point baskets.
Fidel Cabrera chipped in with 11 points and Ryan Poole had seven points in the win.
Muir’s Devin Hardy had a game-best 14 points.
Troy Kirk and Saadiq Moore contributed seven points apiece for the Mustangs.
In a true sign of class, I asked PHS coach Tony Brooks about his thoughts on the near two-decade Pacific League championship run coming to an end.
Instead of complaining about this or that, Brooks went out of his way to congratulate CV coach Shawn Zagarian and the Falcons players.
Both PHS and Muir will have to wait nine days until CIF releases the playoff brackets.
Quotable:
Pasadena coach, Tony Brooks: “It was good to get back to having a near full team as opposed to playing with six or seven guys. I’m so proud of this team and the way they refocused themselves this week. The pandemic has nearly stopped our season cold. It has been incredibly difficult to overcome its effects, but we have managed to pick things up where we left off in December. Tonight was not an easy game to play. There is so much emotion playing against guys you’re familiar with, and we managed to play with a lot of poise and with an emphasis on the team.
As far as not winning league this year, there is nothing to be ashamed of in finishing second. Only playing one round really makes for a narrow road to the championship. We felt even after we lost at CV by just a few points that we would see them again to climb back to first place. But with missing integral players for such a long time and having to play fully stocked teams with seven players, and a league season cut in half, our championship door shut pretty quickly. That’s ok. It doesn’t lessen my pride for my guys. They have worked so hard this season. Congratulations to Shawn Zagarian and his championship team. It is well deserved. We will be back next year competing for another championship. That’s for sure. Now our focus turns to improving and being at our best for the playoffs.”
Box Score:
P: 15-16-11-15-(57)
M: 8-8-14-8-(38)
PHS scoring: Ethan Patterson 13, Fidel Cabrera 11, Ryan Poole 7, Teddy Reyes 6, Casey Barrett 6, Drew Brown 6, Jason Guyton 4, Desmond Every 2, Demille Brown 2
Muir scoring: Devin Hardy 14, Troy Kirk 7, Saadiq Moore 7, Jenkins Jiaah 6, Brandon Hardy 4,
Records: Pasadena (11-9, 5-2); Muir (7-12, 4-2)
Photos by Tim Lunney Football: There were a number of programs within the 210 Prep Sports coverage zone that had historic seasons in 2024. Of the 30 teams we follow, only two finished the regular season without a loss. Bonita began the year with 11 consecutive wins for the first time since 1999. The Bearcats […]
Photos by Carlo Montalbo (@Carlo.Monalbo on Instagram) Boys Basketball: Glendora got one more game in before Christmas. And they made the most of it. The Tartans cruised to a 91-58 nonleague victory over Hesperia. GHS had a 48-25 lead at the half. Sebastian Demano scored a game-high 21 points. Demano also had five rebounds, nine […]
Photos by Alex Veliz Girls Basketball: La Salle improved to 12-1 after Saturday’s 40-28 victory over Westlake at the La Salle Winter Showcase. The Lancers led 22-12 at the half, and 32-17 after three quarters. Casey Higgins led La Salle with 10 points. Aislin Tamez Torres had nine points, and Emily Fong contributed eight points […]
Photos by Alex Veliz Girls Basketball La Salle won its eighth consecutive game on Friday. The Lancers cruised to a 75-45 victory over Schurr at the La Salle Winter Showcase. LSHS had a 38-17 lead at the break, and the outcome was never in doubt. Casey Higgins scored a game-high 21 points. Emily Fong chipped […]
Boys Basketball: Etiwanda picked up victory No. 10 of the 2024-25 season on Friday. The Eagles outlasted their visitors from Vista Murrieta, 69-57, behind 18 points from AJ Orji. Orji scored 15 of the 18 in the second half. Ayden Hamilton chipped in with 14 points and Sloane Harris had 11. Cisco Munoz scored a […]
Boys Basketball: Bonita dug itself a 15-point hole at the half in Thursday’s Palomares League opener at Diamond Bar. The Bearcats outscored the Brahmas 49-41, but DBHS would hold on for a 73-66 victory. Bonita had a 10-9 advantage in 3-pointers made. Tyler West led Diamond Bar with 20 points and Jedison Chow had 16 […]
Photos by Carlo Montalbo (@Carlo.Montalbo on Instagram) Boys Basketball: Something had to give when Glendora and Ayala met up Thursday night in Chino Hills. The Bulldogs had won five in a row and 10 of their last 11 games. And the visiting Tartans entered the Palomares League opener for both programs on an eight-game win […]
Wrestling: So far, so good. Bonita has opened the Palomares League portion of its schedule with a pair of blowouts. Last week, the Bearcats secured a 64-18 victory at Diamond Bar. And last night, BHS won 12-of-14 matches, and they cruised to a 65-11 victory. Bonita is now 6-1 overall, and 2-0 in league matches. […]
Photos by Carlo Montalbo (@Carlo.Montalbo on Instagram) Girls Basketball: Glendora had one of its poorest shooting efforts of the year. But when push came to shove, the Tartans pulled away in the second half and they secured a 44-33 victory at Ayala in the Palomares League opener for both programs. GHS and AHS combined for […]
