Etiwanda girls basketball beats Mater Dei again to reach CIF SoCal Regional Open Division final

• March 9, 2025

RANCHO CUCAMONGA — Etiwanda’s student section donned black, formal attire and cheered in front of a tombstone that read “RIP” as its girls basketball team played host Mater Dei in the CIF Southern California Regional on Saturday.

Aliyahna “Puff” Morris made sure the funeral theme found its mark.

The Cal-bound guard scored 32 points as Etiwanda not only maintained its grip of the Monarchs but kept alive the hopes of a second consecutive CIF State Open Division title with a 67-57 victory in a tense semifinal game at Etiwanda High.

In the Open Division final Tuesday, No. 2 seeded Etiwanda (26-5) will play at No. 1 Ontario Christian (30-1), which beat Sierra Canyon 69-57 in overtime in the other semifinal.

“I’m really excited,” Morris of the final, which will send its winner to the CIF State championship on March 15 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento. “We lost to this team twice already in the season so I’m excited to get another opportunity at them.”

“We played well tonight. I think we executed very well down the stretch,” the senior added.

Ontario Christian has won 16th consecutive games, including a 65-63 victory against Etiwanda in the CIF-SS Open Division final on March 1.

Etiwanda extended its winning streak against Mater Dei to five games, all of which have been in the Open playoffs the past four seasons. The Eagles beat the Monarchs 63-60 in the CIF-SS Open Division semifinals on Feb. 22.

Etiwanda also ended Mater Dei’s season for the second straight year, a trend the student section certainly knew.

“I told myself (entering high school), I never want to lose to them,” Morris said of Mater Dei. “I’ve never lost to them and won’t have to. It’s over.”

Iowa-bound guard Addison Deal led Mater Dei (29-4) with 29 points, including a driving layup just before halftime to cut Etiwanda’s lead to 27-25.

But Morris and Chasity Rice made consecutive 3-pointers early in the third period as the Eagles opened with an 8-0 run to seize control.

Arynn Finley added a 3-pointer for Etiwanda and Morris closed the period with a 3-pointer from the corner to beat the buzzer.

Early in the fourth, Mater Dei trimmed its deficit to six point but LSU-bound Grace Knox (12 rebounds, four blocks) answered with a 3-pointer and Morris scored on a fastbreak to put Etiwanda back in control.

“I want us to have a little bit more composure in certain situations but I thought we fought well and we composed ourselves at the right moments to makes plays when it counted,” Etiwanda coach Stan Delus said.

Mater Dei’s Kaeli Wynn surprisingly returned from a dislocated knee to play in her first game since Jan 25. The junior came off the bench to score seven points, including two 3-pointers.

During one sequence late in the fourth, an intentional foul against Mater Dei and technical foul against Etiwanda led to security coming onto the court.

“It was the most physical basketball game I’ve ever been a part of,” said Monarchs coach Jody Wynn, a former collegiate coach. “We just couldn’t get over the hump and they’d go down and make a big transition play or hit a big 3.”

​ Orange County Register 

Sierra Canyon boys basketball tops JSerra in double OT, advances to regional finals

• March 9, 2025

CHATSWORTH — Sierra Canyon’s Stephen Kankole hadn’t made a shot all game. But when pressure mounted in double overtime in Saturday’s game against JSerra, he released all of what was weighing on the Trailblazers.

His corner 3-pointer gave Sierra Canyon a seven-point lead with 2:11 left in double overtime and Bryce Cofield’s offensive efforts bolstered a 68-64 win over the Lions to secure a trip to the CIF State Regional Division I final.

“I’ve never been scared of the big moment,” Kankole said. “It was pretty cool, but we have two more games to win.”

The top-seeded Trailblazers (25-7) will have to get through third-seeded Redondo on Tuesday night in order to reach the CIF State championship game in Sacramento. Tuesday’s regional final will be played at Sierra Canyon.

Cofield made a layup roughly 30 seconds into double overtime and missed on his next attempt, but Maxi Adams was there for the put-back. Cofield ended the game with 29 points and nine rebounds.

“I feel like I led the team,” Cofield said. “Trusting my teammates, stuck to the game plan and it got us the win.”

Rebounding — especially on the defensive boards — kept Sierra Canyon in the game in critical moments. Defensive aggression against the height of JSerra (24-11) got the Trailblazers the momentum they needed in the waning minutes.

“It’s a huge emphasis. We do jumping jacks every day,” Cofield said. “Playing defense and rebounding is a huge key to us winning games.”

Sierra Canyon was losing battles in the post early against JSerra bigs BJ Davis-Ray, a 6-foot-6 SMU commit, and Brannon Martinsen, a 6-foot-7 four-star recruit.

Davis-Ray finished with 15 points and Martinsen contributed 14 points.

“They kept getting downhill,” Kankole said. “We dealt with foul trouble — Bryce (Cofield) fouled out, Gavin fouled out, Jaden fouled out, so Bryce James was big for us guarding (Davis-Ray) at the end and Chris Cain guarding (Martinsen). It was big for us.”

The Trailblazers tightened up defensively and pulled down valuable rebounds to get ahead, but it was a 3-pointer from Adams that gave Sierra Canyon its first significant advantage at 12-6 with 4:16 left in the first quarter.

Cofield scored 12 points in the first half and capped his team’s first-quarter scoring with a 3-pointer from the top of the key.

JSerra took a brief lead in the second quarter. Davis-Ray made a free throw and Dominic Bolton, who ended up with 14 points, hit a corner 3 to pull the Lions ahead 24-23.

“They didn’t want to lose, just how we don’t,” Cofield said. “They were hungry. It’s late in the season so everyone has that same kind of hunger on the line.”

The Trailblazers scored six of their 11 second-quarter points on free throws and Sierra Canyon struggled to keep a rhythm as they continued to be on the receiving end of fouls.

The Trailblazers got back into their defensive groove, however, to keep the ball in their hands and led 32-25 at halftime.

Sierra Canyon is one of two Mission League teams left in the CIF State Regional playoffs alongside Notre Dame, which beat St. Joseph 66-64 in the Open Division on Saturday night.

“We were disappointed we didn’t make Open Division,” Kankole said. “So we just want to show people why we’re in the wrong division. We made DI which is cool, but at the end of the day, we want to win.”

​ Orange County Register 

UFC 313: Magomed Ankalaev stuns Alex Pereira to claim light heavyweight title

• March 9, 2025

LAS VEGAS — Magomed Ankalaev’s plan coming into Saturday’s light heavyweight bout at UFC 313 was to pressure Alex Pereira.

And then add more pressure. And more.

The strategy worked, as Ankalaev scored a stunning upset with a unanimous decision to take Pereira’s undisputed light heavyweight belt.

“I can’t even put it into words,” Ankalaev said in the ring during the post-fight interview through a translator. “It’s been such a long way, and it’s my dream. It’s on my waist.”

All three judges scored in favor of Ankalaev (21-1-1), with scores of 49-46 and two at 48-47.

Ankalaev was never intimidated by his well-decorated opponent, even after enduring a barrage of leg kicks in the first round.

Rather than play things cautiously, Ankalaev went on the offensive and stayed aggressive in backing down Pereira while using an overpowering left hand that continued to stagger UFC’s top active star.

Bruce Buffer’s announcement with the result propelled a chorus of boos from the pro-Pereira crowd.

“I knew it would be a war,” said Pereira (12-3-0), who was putting his belt on the line for the fourth time. “Every fight of mine is a war.”

Pereira (12-2), who turns 38 on July 7, closed -120 at BetMGM Sportsbook.

As close as the fight was, UFC President and CEO Dana White had one word when asked about a potential rematch: “Probably.”

In the co-main event, the No. 3-ranked lightweight and fan favorite Justin Gaethje (27-5-0) earned a unanimous decision over No. 11 Rafael Fiziev (12-4-0) in what was tabbed “ Fight of the Night.” Gaethje was scheduled to fight Dan Hooker, who pulled out because of a hand injury. Gatheje dropped Fiziev with a stiff right uppercut in the second round.

Lightweight Ignacio Bahamondes (17-5-0) earned a first-round win when he made Jalin Turner (14-9-0) tap after administering a triangle choke at the 2:29 mark. Turner left the cage and waited in front of press row for Bahamondes to finish his interview, intending to return to the cage to leave his gloves and signify his retirement. Security would not let him return, however.

No. 5 strawweight contender Amanda Lemos improved to 15-4-1 with a unanimous decision over seventh-ranked Iasmin Lucindo (17-6-0).

Mauricio Ruffy (12-1-0) delivered a spinning heel kick with his right foot to the temple of King Green (32-17-1) to score a vicious knockout just 2:07 into the first round of their lightweight bout.

Just after Ruffy’s knockout kick and before the women’s bout, a tribute video for Robbie Lawler played in honor of the former welterweight champion. Watching cageside, an emotional Lawler received a standing ovation as it was announced he would be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame’s Modern Wing as a member of the Class of 2025. The ceremony will take place as part of the 13th Annual UFC International Fight Week on June 26.

“Robbie was an absolute killer, and I have a ton of respect for his toughness and his fighting style, which helped grow the sport of MMA and UFC by attracting a lot of new fans,” UFC president and CEO Dana White said in a statement.

​ Orange County Register 

Cal State Fullerton battles UC Riverside in season-ending loss

• March 9, 2025

FULLERTON — The Cal State Fullerton men’s basketball team played its most competitive game in six weeks but fell short of an upset in its season finale.

Barrington Hargress scored 22 points and UC Riverside held on to hand Fullerton its 12th consecutive loss, 64-59, on Saturday night at Titan Gym. Isaiah Moses added 12 points and Jack Whitbourn had 10 points and 10 rebounds for the Highlanders (21-11 overall, 14-6 Big West), who finished in a tie for third place and will be the No. 3 seed for next week’s eight-team Big West Tournament in Henderson, Nevada. They will face an opponent to be determined in a quarterfinal on Thursday night.

Kaleb Brown had 14 points and Zach Visentin scored 13 in his final game for the Titans (6-26, 1-19), who cut an eight-point deficit to two with 16 seconds left but could not topple the Highlanders. Kobe Young had 10 points and 11 rebounds and Keith Richard added 10 points and seven rebounds for Fullerton, which failed to qualify for the conference tournament for the second straight season.

Moses gave UCR a 54-46 lead on a 3-pointer with 5:56 left, but the Titans refused to surrender. Visentin converted a three-point play then added a jumper in the paint to make it a three-point game. Keith Richard then scored on a tip-in of a Young miss to cut the margin to 54-53 with 3:57 remaining.

A Niyi Olabode 3-pointer gave UCR a four-point lead, then Fullerton missed shots on three straight possessions (two from close range) and Riverside’s Nate Pickens made a layup for a 61-55 lead with 45 seconds left. Richard then rebounded his own miss and drew a foul, making one of two free throws.

Hargress missed a free throw with 31 seconds left, and Brown answered with a 3-pointer that cut the lead to 61-59 with 16 seconds left. Fullerton was forced to foul and Pickens made a pair of free throws with 13 seconds left, then Brown missed a 3-point attempt and Hargress split a pair of free throws to close the scoring.

On senior night, the Titans opted for size with the 6-foot-9 Visentin replacing the inactive Donovan Oday (6-2) in the starting lineup. Both teams struggled to make shots early, but Brown made two 3-pointers to help the Titans open a 17-10 lead less than 10 minutes into the game.

The game was a physical, defensive grind, with Young and Antwan Robinson doing strong work on the boards to keep Hargress and UCR from gaining momentum. Young hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:28 left and the teams went to the locker room knotted at 25-all at halftime. Fullerton shot 32% from the field (10 for 31) in the first half, and the Highlanders shot just 23% (7 for 30).

The second half remained tight throughout, setting the stage for the drama of the final six minutes.

UCR shot much better in the second half (15 for 26, 58%), while Fullerton still struggled to find its range (11 for 29, 38%) in a game that featured eight ties and seven lead changes.

In an improvement from some of their recent lopsided losses, the Titans had just nine turnovers.

Fullerton won its only conference game at Long Beach State on Jan. 18 and hadn’t lost a game by less than 15 points since an eight-point defeat to UC Santa Barbara on Jan. 25. Before Saturday, the Titans had dropped their previous five games by 37, 30, 25, 45 and 39 points.

BIG WEST STANDINGS

Final regular-season standings, through Saturday, March 8

UC San Diego – 28-4, 18-2

UC Irvine – 27-5, 17-3

CS Northridge – 22-9, 14-6

UC Riverside – 21-11, 14-6

UC Santa Barbara – 19-12, 11-9

UC Davis – 15-16, 9-11

Cal Poly (SLO) – 14-18, 8-12

CS Bakersfield – 14-18, 8-12

Hawaii – 15-16, 7-13

Long Beach State – 7-25, 3-17

CS Fullerton – 6-26, 1-19

​ Orange County Register 

Fairmont Prep girls basketball can’t keep up with Windward in Division I regional semifinals

• March 9, 2025

ANAHEIM — The Fairmont Prep girls basketball team ran into a juggernaut in the form of Windward in the Division I semifinals of the CIF Southern California Regional playoffs Saturday at Fairmont Prep Academy.

The Wildcats hit 10 3-pointers and seemed to keep Fairmont Prep, the No. 1 seed, in disarray throughout their 79-55 victory over the Huskies.

Windward (21-10) will play No. 2 seed Sage Hill in the regional final Tuesday at Sage Hill. The Lightning defeated Brentwood, 59-39, in the other regional semifinal.

“When anyone shoots like that, they are going to win the basketball game,” Fairmont Prep coach Josh Lazano said of Windward. “When they are shooting 50-plus percent, it’s really hard to beat teams like that, especially in the playoffs.”

The Wildcats also made it tough for Fairmont Prep’s scorers.

When the Huskies (23-11) worked the ball into the post, there was at least one Wildcat defender positioned there to disrupt the shot.

The Wildcats hit five 3-pointers in the second quarter, en route to a 20-point lead at the half.

Fairmont Prep opened the third quarter with a mini four-point run and when the Wildcats came up empty on their first three possessions of the quarter, it appeared as though the Huskies had grabbed the momentum.

But the notion of a comeback ended quickly when Olivia Lagao hit a 3-pointer to put the Wildcats ahead by 22.

The Huskies, who finished the regular season ranked No. 3 in Orange County, never cut the deficit to below 20 the rest of the way and fell behind by 30 points midway through the final quarter.

The outcome was completely different than the last time the teams met in the CIF-SS Open Division playoffs, when Fairmont Prep defeated the Wildcats 69-65 in a pool-play game at Windward.

Wildcats coach Rachel Schrote said her team learned a lot from that first matchup and made several adjustments.

“They went to the free throw line 26 times last time,” Schrote said. “That was a huge (advantage)… They were 22 for 26, we were 3 for 5. So, we really worked on walling up, making sure we don’t commit silly fouls, and doubling down on rebounds.

Maria Mejia scored 18 points to lead the Huskies and Sarah Aldeguer added 12.

Lozano was pleased with the Huskies’ overall performance this season, considering they played in the Open Division of the CIF-SS playoffs after losing in the quarterfinal round of the CIF-SS Division 2AA playoffs last season.

The Huskies were in Division I of the regional playoffs for the first time since 2017, the coach said.

“We’ve got a good group coming back, so we expect to be back in the Open next year,” Lozano said. “Our goal is to overachieve. Our goal is to play against the best all the time.”

​ Orange County Register 

Raylene Valadez lifts Hillcrest girls basketball team past Santa Ana, into Division V regional final

• March 9, 2025

RIVERSIDE — Raylene Valadez cried it out at halftime, then made sure the other team left in tears.

Less than two months since returning from a torn ACL that kept her out all of last year and half of this season, Valadez totaled a career-high 20 points as the Hillcrest girls basketball team defeated Santa Ana 48-33 in a CIF State Division V regional semifinal Saturday night.

“After the first half, (Valadez) was in the locker room crying,” Hillcrest coach Chloe Wells said. “She was like, ‘I can’t do it. Take me out,’ and I’m like, ‘Ray, you’re our best option and you’re playing great.’

“And her sisters are in that locker room saying, ‘Ray, we believe in you. You have to keep going,’” Wells said. “(Valadez) and Daisy Ingram, they stayed in there and cried, and Ray came out and she was a different person in the second half.”

Valadez finished 4 of 8 from 3-point range for Hillcrest (24-6 overall) and was 7 of 16 from the field overall with four rebounds, three steals, three assists and two blocks.

“We sat on that bench and I spoke life into her and said, ‘Ray, you can do this.’” Wells said. “Once she got back in there she was lights out and literally led us in every way.”

The Trojans host Rosamond in the Division V title game on Tuesday and are one win away from advancing the state final for the first time.

“We’ve come a long way,” Valadez said. “Being able to keep going; a lot of teams’ seasons ended early so this is very exciting and I’m grateful for it.”

After narrowly defeating Santa Ana 39-36 in the Southern Section Division 5AA championship game a week prior, Wells knew team defense would mean the difference in the rematch.

“We had to identify who the hot hand was going to be and shut that down,” Wells said. “Once we did that the whole game opened up for us.”

Valadez scored the first seven points of the game for Hillcrest – including her first 3-pointer with a second remaining in the first quarter – and then took over as the Trojans’ primary ball handler after guards Daisy Ingram and Amaya Branchcomb turned the ball over multiple times.

“In the first half, I felt like I had to take care of the ball more and that all the weight was on my shoulders,” Valadez said.

Santa Ana played without starting guard Yarexy Diaz (flu) but jumped out to a six-point lead early in the second quarter on a pair of 3s from Jazmine Solis.

“Not having (Diaz) was a big, big loss for us,” Santa Ana coach Dana Nguyen said. “We had trouble scoring, and when we have trouble scoring we look bad.”

Hillcrest’s Za’Nylah Jackson and Branchcomb both got inside for baskets, and Valadez sank her second 3-pointer to help the Trojans briefly retake the lead before they headed into halftime tied  at 16.

In the third quarter, Zoey Boulware sank a pair of free throws before Valadez, Branchcomb and Valadez sank back-to-back-to-back 3s, helping Hillcrest push its lead to 10 points.

“In the second half my teammates, they lifted me back up, helped us up strong and pushed through,” Valadez said. “I’m really proud of my team.”

After getting called for a technical foul, Boulware’s physical presence in the paint wore down Santa Ana’s inside defenders and relieved pressure on Hillcrest’s perimeter players.

“She’s a game-changer for us,” Wells said. “We call her ‘The Assassin’ because she’s literally a killer.”

Hillcrest’s leading scorer at 13.8 points per game, Boulware finished with six points, 12 rebounds, three blocks and three steals.

“She cleans up every rebound, she can go coast-to-coast and when she is locked in we are a completely different team,” Wells said.

Branchcomb was 5 of 6 from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter and added 10 points, three assists and three steals for Hillcrest.

Solis was 5 of 16 from the field with 16 points and three steals for Santa Ana (17-13) in the season-ending loss.

​ Orange County Register 

Orange Lutheran girls soccer comes up short against Torrey Pines in battle for regional title

• March 9, 2025

ORANGE — The Orange Lutheran girls soccer team was one win away from collecting the program’s first CIF regional championship.

After posting a pair of shutouts in the first two Southern California Regional playoff games, the Lancers were thriving.

But Orange Lutheran gave up a first-half goal to Torrey Pines and was unable to find the back of the net late in the game. The Lancers lost 1-0 in the Division II regional final Saturday at Orange Lutheran High.

The visiting Falcons (17-5), from the CIF San Diego Section, leaned on goalkeeper Lolo Johnson in the final minutes.

The second-seeded Lancers (13-6-1) had a goal from a set piece disallowed in the 70th minute.

The Lancers’ Joey Birkbeck took a free kick from the right flank and the ball found Ariana Markey, who headed it past Johnson. The goal appeared to tie the game, but only momentarily as the head referee ruled an offside that negated the goal.

“There’s two defining moments where I felt like we were onsides,” Lancers coach Luis Segovia said. “We heard the sideline ref say, ‘hey, she’s on, she’s on’ and the center ref called the offside, not the sideline ref, right. So that was rough.”

Orange Lutheran kept attacking and forced back-to-back corners in the 73rd minute but was unable to get a shot past Johnson, who punched the ball away after the first corner and saved a volley attempt right after.

Torrey Pines coach Martyn Hansford, who coached the boys team at Newport Harbor in the early 2000s, was in awe of his team’s gritty performance late in the match.

“It’s staying strong, stepping up, headers off the goal line,” Hansford said. “Our keeper had an amazing game and sometimes it’s just written in the stars for you, you know.”

In the game’s final minutes, the Lancers’ Charlotte Kamansky’s hit the crossbar with a shot and then Johnson stopped Kenadi Hammontree’s close-range shot.

Ashley O’Regan scored the only goal of the game in the 19th minute on a cross from Jaslyn Cumberland.

Segovia felt his team responded well in the second half.

“We rebounded in the second half,” he said. “I felt like they were in the 3-5-2, and we were in a 4-4-2 Diamond, so it took us a while to adjust, but once we adjusted, we were just fine.”

“I think they had one shot on goal the entire game, they didn’t have any corners, nothing. They just had one shot,” Segovia added.

Segovia, in his first year at the helm for the Lancers, is anticipating great things in the future for his program.

“There’s a lot to be proud of. We took over a group that lost every game of the Trinity League last year,” Segovia said. “They didn’t make CIF (last year), and now we’re in the state final with two seniors and one junior on the field. The rest were freshmen and sophomores.”

“I’m super proud of them,” he added. “They can hold their heads high, you know. We set the standard for next year.”

​ Orange County Register 

Lakers’ Jaxson Hayes sits out vs. Celtics with knee injury

• March 9, 2025

BOSTON — The Lakers were without their starting center and opted to use a small-ball first unit for Saturday’s primetime road game against their cross-country rivals, the Boston Celtics.

Jaxson Hayes wasn’t available against the Celtics because of a bruised right knee injury that he suffered late in Thursday’s overtime home win over the New York Knicks.

Hayes hyperextended his knee after being fouled by Karl-Anthony Towns during a layup attempt with one minute left in the extra period.

The 24-year-old big man made both free throws before fouling out 50 seconds later against the Knicks.

“Don’t think it’s anything serious,” Coach JJ Redick said pregame. “We’ve just been monitoring his swelling and his mobility. He’ll be out. And hopefully, he’s back soon.”

Forward Jarred Vanderbilt started in place of Hayes, giving the Lakers a small-ball first unit of Vanderbilt, LeBron James, Dorian Finney-Smith, Austin Reaves and Luka Doncic.

The Lakers remained without starting forward Rui Hachimura, who was sidelined for the fifth consecutive game because of left patellar tendinopathy.

Redick said pregame that Hachimura is “doing well’ after being re-evaluated before Saturday’s game, adding that Hachimura is ramping up his on-court work and is in the team’s return-to-play protocol.

The Lakers are expected to have another update on Hachimura in a week.

The team closes out its four-game road trip, which started on Saturday, against the Denver Nuggets on March 14 at Ball Arena.

BALL SECURITY

After being one of the league’s better teams with taking care of the ball, the Lakers have been one of the worst over the last few weeks.

The Lakers entered Saturday with a turnover percentage – the percentage of plays that end in a player or team’s turnover – of 15.4% (ranked No. 24 among all teams) since Feb. 10, which is when Doncic made his Lakers debut in a home win over the Utah Jazz.

Their 13.8% turnover percentage in their first 50 games ranked No. 9.

Redick stressed the importance of being organized offensively and having the proper spacing ahead of Saturday’s game, leading to a question about how much of the Lakers’ recent giveaways issues are related to working through certain kinks in their offense.

“There’s always more than one factor why you’re turning the ball over,” Redick said. “And some of that is the [Portland Trail] Blazers [game on Feb. 20], not having Luka, they’re a really disruptive defensive team. We had a high turnover game there. Some of it is just, again, figuring out the spacing stuff, knowing where our outlets are, particularly against blitzes.

“When the ball is posted, whether it’s LeBron or with Luka, again, knowing where our outlets are, knowing where our proper spacing is, that’s a big thing. Those guys are gonna have the ball a lot and they’re naturally gonna turn the ball over some. As much as we can limit the rest of the turnovers and those guys can be in the 2-4 range versus the 5-8 range.”

​ Orange County Register