Boys Basketball:
Damien’s highly successful 2023-24 season came to an end on Saturday night in Bellflower.
But the No. 12 seeded Spartans didn’t go down without a fight.
St. John Bosco, the No. 1 seed, however, would edge DHS, 63-59, in the CIF State Division 1 Southern California Regional semifinal.
The game was so close that the first, second and fourth quarters were determined by two points or less.
The second half began with the game tied at 31-31, and SJB would go on a 21-15 run in the third period to give themselves a tiny cushion.
St. John Bosco’s Brandon McCoy Jr. led all scorers with 25 points, including a pair of 3-pointers.
The Braves sophomore scored 10 of those 25 points during the crucial third-quarter run.
Dominic Perfetti hit a pair of 3’s and finished with 14 points.
Jack Turner had 10 for the Braves.
Nate Garcia led Damien with 19 points.
In the final game of his remarkable high school career, Xavier Clinton finished with 12 points, including two 3-pointers.
Eli Garner also had 12 points for the Spartans.
Damien won 28 games this year, and they secured their first outright league championship since the 2011-12 season.
Up next: The Braves will host Mater Dei on Tuesday at 7.
The Monarchs (29-5) defeated Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks, 79-71, in their semifinal round contest.
Bosco hopes the third time is the charm after dropping a pair of Trinity League games to Mater Dei.
Box Score:
DHS: 16-15-15-13-(59)
SJB: 15-16-21-11-(63)
Damien scoring: Nate Garcia 19, Eli Garner 12, Xavier Clinton 12, Jacob Allen 9, Elijah Smith 5, Zaire Rasshan 2
St. John Bosco scoring: Brandon McCoy Jr. 25, Dominic Perfetti 14, Jack Turner 10, Elzie Harrington 8, Chris Komin 6
Records: Damien (28-6); St. John Bosco (26-7)
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 […]
Girls Basketball: Another Prep League basketball for Flintridge Prep. And another blowout. The Wolves led by 27 points after the first eight minutes, and they cruised to a 71-13 victory at Westridge. So far, Prep has league wins over Mayfield, Chadwick and Westridge by a combined margin of 225-52. Olivia Childs led the way with […]
