UC Irvine pulls away from Cal Poly to reach Big West Tournament title game
- March 15, 2025
Fans of the Big West Conference have long dreamed of getting two teams into the NCAA Tournament, and they might just get their wish this season.
The UC Irvine men’s basketball team held down its end of the bargain on Friday night by pulling away for a 96-78 victory against Cal Poly in a Big West Tournament semifinal at Lee’s Family Forum in Henderson, Nevada.
The second-seeded Anteaters (28-5) will face top-seeded UC San Diego (29-4) in the championship game on Saturday at 6:30 p.m.
“This is a big game for our community, and we’re excited for it, and it’s a big game for the UCSD community too,” UCI coach Russell Turner said.
The Tritons have won 14 consecutive games after pulling away in the second half to beat fifth-seeded UC Santa Barbara, 69-51, in the earlier semifinal.
Saturday’s winner will get an automatic berth into the 68-team NCAA Tournament, but this season the loser will also get a long look as an at-large candidate. Both teams have been Top 10 mainstays in College Insider.com’s Mid-Major Top 25 all season, with UCSD at No. 2 and UCI at No. 6 in this week’s rankings. They split their regular-season games, each winning on the other’s court.
“Both teams know we’ve obviously got a lot on the line,” Turner said. “We’re looking forward to competing. We’ve both been successful at times against each other, and both also struggled against each other.”
The seventh-seeded Mustangs (16-19) had come a long way since the Anteaters defeated them on Jan. 18, dropping them to 0-8 in conference play. Cal Poly entered the game on a five-game winning streak after upsetting third-seeded UC Riverside in the quarterfinals on Thursday.
“They’ve completely changed the dynamics of that program,” Turner said of Cal Poly. “Our style won out tonight.”
All five starters scored in double figures for UCI, led by 7-foot-1 center Bent Leuchten, who finished with 21 points and 10 rebounds.
Devin Tillis had 17 points, eight rebounds and six assists, Justin Hohn scored 15 points and Myles Che, Jurian Dixon and reserve forward Kyle Evans finished with 10 points each for the Anteaters.
“Had a lot of guys contribute, which is always what makes our team good,” Turner said.
UCI is back in the championship game for the first time in four years, its longest dry spell since 2009-12. Cal State Fullerton and Long Beach State have each been to the championship game twice in the past four years.
Mac Riniker scored 22 points to lead Cal Poly and Jarred Hyder added 15 points, but Owen Koonce, who came in averaging 17.3 ppg, matched his season low with four points on 2-for-9 shooting.
UCI had defeated Cal Poly in the previous six matchups and 16 of the past 17, but the Anteaters trailed for most of the first half.
UCI didn’t take the lead for good until a 6-0 run made it 49-43 with 16:33 remaining.
Che scored his first points on a 3-pointer from in front of his own bench to extend the lead to 56-48 with 15:04 left. The Anteaters then drew an offensive foul on the other end and Luechten scored with his left hand from in close to give UCI its first double-digit advantage at 58-48.
The Mustangs managed to get back within single digits on a few trips down the court before Che buried another 3-pointer for a 77-66 advantage with 7:23 left and UCI maintained the double-digit advantage the rest of the way.
“Really proud of the belief that our team showed, overcoming a difficult start, where we looked nervous and we’re playing a tough team in Cal Poly,” Turner said.
The Mustangs helped themselves in the first half by shooting 7 for 16 from 3-point range before finishing 13 for 28 for the game (46.4%).
“They shot the ball incredibly well,” Turner said. “They’ve developed an identity that’s difficult for us in many ways, and I think they had confidence in that, and it showed in the first half, but our defense took over the game, which is how we win. That was the difference in the second half, along with our interior presence.”
UCI committed seven turnovers in the first seven minutes, but was able to stay close because the Mustangs missed 13 of their first 17 shots.
Cal Poly used an 8-0 run to expand its lead to 25-17 with 7:23 left in the half, but Isaac Jessup, who came in averaging 11.7 ppg, picked up his third foul shortly afterward and the Anteaters began chipping away. Jessup finished with 10 points.
UCI briefly moved back ahead 38-37 on a 3-pointer by Tillis with 45 seconds left in the half, but the Mustangs scored the final points on a jumper by Hyder with four seconds remaining and the Mustangs took the 39-38 lead into the break.
The Anteaters cleaned things up and committed just three turnovers in the final 13 minutes of the first half.
“Overall, we were able to dominate the paint, both on defense and on offense as the game wore on,” Turner said. “In the first half, we weren’t able to do that. There was uncertainty because they were making so many 3s.”
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Sierra Canyon boys basketball proud of hard-fought win in CIF state Division I final
- March 15, 2025
SACRAMENTO – Winning the CIF State Open Division championship is the highest achievement of California high school boys basketball.
Sierra Canyon boys basketball has won a couple of Open Division championships, in 2018 and ‘19.
On Friday, the Trailblazers won the CIF State Division I title with a 58-53 victory over Lincoln of Stockton at Golden 1 Center.
To Sierra Canyon coach Andre Chevalier, the Division I championship is good enough.
“We prefer the Open Division,” Chevalier said. “But this one was hard as hell. We’re going to hang a banner like it’s a world championship. We’re going to get rings like it’s a world championship.”
Sierra Canyon gets that CIF State championship banner and the championship rings because the Trailblazers played their best basketball in the final two minutes of Friday’s game.
It started with a 3-pointer by junior Maximo Adams that put Sierra Canyon on top 51-50. He was 0 for 5 on 3-point shots before that one.
“Coaches tell me to keep on shooting,” Adams said. “So I let it fly.”
RELATED: Sage Hill girls struggle at free throw line, fall to Carondelet in CIF state Division I final
Lincoln’s Anthony Moore made one of his two free throws to tie it 51-51.
Bryce Cofield scored inside for Sierra Canyon to give the Trailblazers a 53-51 lead with 58 seconds remaining. Adams put in a layup with 17 seconds left off of a great bounce pass in the lane from Stephen Kankole, was fouled on his basket and made the free throw to push the lead to 56-51.
Anthony Moore scored for Lincoln to make it 56-53 with eight seconds to go. Adams iced the win with two free throws with four seconds remaining.
The loudest cheer of the night came when the Lakers’ LeBron James walked into the arena to watch his son Bryce play for Sierra Canyon. Sitting in a front-row seat alongside his wife and other members of his family, LeBron actively cheered the Trailblazers and interacted with fans around him. LeBron has been sidelined with a groin injury and was not with the Lakers for Friday’s game in Denver.
Gavin Hightower led Sierra Canyon (27-7) with game-highs of 15 points and nine rebounds. Adams scored 14 points, Cofield scored 11 points with three steals and Kankole scored 10 points. Bryce James contributed three points and five rebounds.
Moore and Donez Lindsey scored 18 points each for Lincoln (31-5).
Lincoln coach Anthony Matthews intimated afterward that the officiating was one-sided. Sierra Canyon shot 30 free throws, and made 20 of them, while Lincoln was 11 of 18 at the line.
Lincoln led for most of the first half. The Trojans were the superior defensive team in the first half and moved the ball around on offense more quickly than the Trailblazers did.
Moore made a 3-pointer late in the first quarter to give Lincoln its biggest lead of the half 16-10. Kankole answered with a 3, making it 16-13 at the end of the quarter.
Hightower scored on an offensive rebound to put the Trailblazers on top 23-22 with 1:17 to go, their first lead since it was 8-7 in their favor, That did not last long; Lincoln scored the half’s final five points to take a 27-23 lead into halftime.
Before the game, when it was thought LeBron James was entering through one tunnel, people – especially the Lincoln student section – rushed the railings, leaning over them to get a look. But James came out one on the other side, and when he did the people screamed like they do at a concert when the house lights dim before the act takes the stage.
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Orange County Register
Corona del Mar boys volleyball fends off challenge from Mater Dei to win in four sets
- March 15, 2025
SANTA ANA — Whether they’re taking on a league opponent or a nonleague opponent, the Corona del Mar boys volleyball team plays one of the toughest schedules in the county.
This week, the Sea Kings showed they are up for the challenge.
Led by the hitting of Ben Brown, Hunter Hannemann and Brady Gant, along with some excellent serving as a team, the Sea Kings came away with a victory over a tough Mater Dei squad, 25-19, 26-28, 25-18, 25-22, in a nonleague match Friday at Mater Dei High School.
The victory for the Sea Kings (9-4), who are ranked No. 6 in Orange County, comes after a sweep of top-ranked Newport Harbor in a key Sunset League match Wednesday.
“Our schedule is loaded with talent,” Sea Kings coach Katey Thompson said. “We don’t have any easy matches. We came out fired up Wednesday. We didn’t quite have that same fire tonight. We had to kind of grind it out. It was an ugly win, but we can learn a lot from an ugly win and that shows a lot about our character.”
All but one set was close and there were multiple ties and lead changes.
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The match also came within a few close plays from going to a fifth set when several kills landed just inside the line for the Sea Kings in the fourth set.
“They’re tough,” Mater Dei coach Jake Nuneviller said of his team. “They’re fighters. There’s a couple plays where we tried to score on sets that you could not score on, and it resulted in errors. However, on the flip side of that, our floor defense was better than what it normally is.”
Brown led the Sea Kings with 15 kills and Hannemann and Gant had 11 and 10 kills, respectively.
Jeramiah Potasi and Ben Smith had 22 and 20 kills, respectively, for the Monarchs (8-8), who were playing their first home match of the season.
Mater Dei, ranked No. 8 in Orange County, had defeated No. 3 Beckman in four sets Wednesday.
A middle kill from Dylan Gallagher gave the Monarchs a 7-4 lead in the first set.
From there, the Sea Kings went on a 12-5 run, which included an ace from Brown and from Hannemann and a block from Daniel Booker.
A kill from Booker later in the set gave Corona del Mar a 24-16 lead when the Monarchs scored on three consecutive kills before hitting the ball out of bounds to give the Sea Kings the winning point.
The second set featured 14 ties and was the most competitive set of the match.
Potasi scored the final three points to win the set in overtime and tie the match.
The Sea Kings never trailed in the third set and went on a 6-1 run late in the set to take 15-6 lead, which was too wide of a margin for the Monarchs to overcome.
The fourth set was also close.
The score was tied at 19-19, 20-20 and 21-21. Potasi’s strong-side kill gave the Monarchs a 22-21 lead.
But Corona del Mar scored the next four points, including a final kill from Hannemann, to give the Sea Kings the set and the match.
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Orange County Register
Ducks edge Predators to gain ground in wild-card chase
- March 15, 2025
ANAHEIM — It might not have been a work of art, but two vital points went into the standings rather than any museum, as the Ducks defeated the Nashville Predators, 2-1, on Friday night at Honda Center.
They moved to within six points of a wild-card playoff berth with the victory, while the Predators, now playing primarily for pride, were unable to extend their four-game winning streak.
Alex Killorn and Troy Terry scored for the Ducks. Lukáš Dostál held the hosts in a battle that saw them out-shot nearly two to one, with that proportion being even more lopsided at points in the third period, by halting 28 pucks.
Jakub Vrana scored Nashville’s only goal, and Juuse Saros had 13 saves.
“It’s a huge win because the boys really pulled together,” Dostál said. “Nashville had a push there. They’re an experienced team. They have veteran guys, but I think we held our ground. It’s important for the win and for the growth [of the team].”
A stalemate persisted for much of the evening, with transparent turning points late in the second period and in the middle of the third.
With 8:40 to play, Killorn’s 15th goal of the season came after Trevor Zegras threw an area pass into the slot, where Killorn criss-crossed with Drew Helleson, swooping on the puck and skating across the crease for the game-deciding goal, and a bit of redemption.
Leo Carlsson added a secondary assist on the goal, bringing his and Zegras’ scoring streaks to four games apiece.
“I thought Leo and Z got better in the third period, and they got rewarded with (Killorn’s) goal there,” Ducks coach Greg Cronin said.
The Ducks had been in a tie game after Killorn’s interference penalty gave Nashville a power play. Early on, Dostál made a resplendent save, once again managing to reach out and knock down a puck that was labeled to one post as he slid toward the other.
“I can’t not mention Dostál, he was unbelievable,” Terry said.
On that same power play, however, Nashville regrouped to knot up the contest at the 4:25 mark behind Vrana’s hard one-timer from inside the blue line, which hit Dostál but squibbled through him.
The Ducks spent another 2:50 shorthanded, including 1:10 with a two-man disadvantage, escaping unscathed and propelling them to Killorn’s late, tie-breaking goal.
“The five-on-three that we had to kill was either going to make or break us,” Cronin said. “It was a trigger to get us to play a little bit more on our toes. There was more energy on the bench and in the building after that.”
For almost 36 minutes of the match, there was no score and few events to speak of, but a short spurt late in the middle frame enlivened the action and left the Ducks up 1-0 at the second intermission.
Terry had been dangerous for much of the night, weaving to the net for chances of his own and creating for others, before he scored at the 15:52 mark of the second period. A minute later, all hell broke loose in the Ducks’ crease as they scrambled frantically to prevent a tying goal.
Mason McTavish and Terry applied forecheck pressure, with Vatrano recovering the puck and sliding it across to Terry at the left faceoff dot, where he launched a missile that found its target under the bar to the far side. It was Terry’s 18th goal of the season and second since Jan. 29, but it reminded the world how he was able to score 37 times in 2021-22.
“It felt good. I haven’t been short on chances,” Terry said. “When Frank got it, I knew their (defenseman) had broken his stick, so I just tried to get over to that weak side. I knew (Ryan Strome) was going to the back post, and once I saw the D slide, I tried to get it off before (the shot was blocked).”
The Predators nearly clawed that goal right back, but Jackson LaCombe was on his toes and Radko Gudas was on his back, his belly and whatever else had to touch the ice to keep the puck from reaching Dostál, who also made a save during the sequence and then nearly slid the puck into his own net.
“It was a lot of fuss, but I think the guys blocked every single one of them, so they helped me out pretty much there,” Dostál said.
Twenty minutes came and went without a goal, with the Ducks failing to capitalize on a pair of power-play opportunities. LaCombe showed off his skating on a breakout that saw him elude three Predators by himself, as well as his deception when he looked off a penalty killer to set up a one-timer for McTavish in the right circle. Dostál helped keep the period scoreles with a cat-like glove save on Michael Bunting.
“It was a strange game. There was not a lot of energy. There wasn’t a lot of ice. It was kind of a tight-checking game,” Cronin said. “They were throwing pucks out and we were trying to gap up, and it seemed to be a little of a tennis match in the first period. There was just no rhythm to it.”
The Ducks will take to the skies for a three-game journey that will open against Cam Fowler and the St. Louis Blues, before heading to Dallas and concluding against these same Predators.
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James Harden, Kawhi Leonard help Clippers pull away from Hawks
- March 15, 2025
ATLANTA — The Clippers got head coach Tyronn Lue back and his stars rewarded him with a relatively stress-free fourth quarter.
James Harden and Kawhi Leonard each scored 25 points, with Harden scoring 13 during a dominant third quarter in the Clippers’ 121-98 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Friday night, their fifth win in six games.
Lue, who joked “I’m playing 48 tonight” when asked if he was on a minutes restriction in his return after missing three games with lower back soreness, had to like the way his team took control in the second half.
After trailing 61-53 at halftime, the Clippers outscored the Hawks 35-8 in a lopsided third quarter. They scored the first 11 points of the second half for a 64-61 lead on a Leonard 3-pointer. Following the last tie at 67-all, they scored 19 consecutive points to open an 86-67 cushion.
Harden shot 8 for 14 from the field (4 for 8 from 3-point range) to go with eight rebounds and seven assists. Leonard, who sat out the Clippers’ Wednesday win in Miami due to load management, shot 11 for 21 to go with six rebounds and a season-high five steals.
Ivica Zubac added 18 points and six rebounds but saw his streak of consecutive double-doubles end at 10 games. Derrick Jones Jr. (14), Bogdan Bogdanovic (12) and Amir Coffey (12) also scored in double figures.
Bogdanovic, making his return to Atlanta, received an ovation and video tribute during a first-quarter timeout. The Clippers acquired Bogdanovic and three second-round draft picks from the Hawks in exchange for Terance Mann and Bones Hyland on Feb. 6. The Hawks waived Hyland.
Onyeka Okongwu, a former USC and Chino Hills High standout, had 18 points and 10 rebounds to lead Atlanta, which saw its four-game winning streak end. Trae Young, who made all 21 free throws in a 123-110 victory over Charlotte on Wednesday night, scored 17 points while shooting 3 for 4 from the foul line with seven assists and seven turnovers. Rookie Zaccharrie Risacher had 15 points and seven rebounds.
NOTES
Clippers swingman Ben Simmons (left knee) scored two points with four assists in 18 minutes as a backup in his return after missing seven games. … The Clippers were without Norman Powell (right hamstring strain) and Jordan Miller (left hip soreness). … Hawks center Clint Capela missed his second straight game for family reasons.
UP NEXT
The Clippers host Charlotte on Sunday at 4 p.m.
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Santa Anita horse racing consensus picks for Saturday, March 15, 2025
- March 15, 2025
The consensus box of Santa Anita horse racing picks comes from handicappers Bob Mieszerski, Eddie Wilson, Kevin Modesti and Mark Ratzky. Here are the picks for thoroughbred races on Saturday, March 15, 2025.
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Orange County scores and player stats for Friday, March 14
- March 15, 2025
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Scores and stats from Orange County games on Friday, March 14
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FRIDAY’S SCORES
SOFTBALL
NONLEAGUE
Sunny Hills 11, Norwalk 1
BOYS VOLLEYBALL
SUNSET LEAGUE
Los Alamitos def. Fountain Valley, 3-0
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San Gabriel Academy boys basketball hangs on to win first CIF State championship
- March 15, 2025
SACRAMENTO – The San Gabriel Academy boys basketball team had a 13-point lead midway through the fourth quarter.
At the end of the game, its lead was down to one point.
That was enough for the Eagles to survive a chaotic ending, as they held on — barely — to beat King’s Academy 52-51 in the CIF State Division III championship game Friday at Golden 1 Center.
Although they were outscored 16-2 during a stretch late in the final quarter, the Eagles won their first CIF State boys basketball championship and finished the season 21-13.
King’s Academy, a private school in Sunnyvale, finished 27-5.
San Gabriel Academy 6-11 sophomore Mahamadou Diop scored 20 points, grabbed 13 rebounds and blocked seven shots. He was 10 of 16 from the floor including a few entertaining dunks.
Diop, who has offers from Texas Tech and UC Riverside, was the only Eagles player to score in double figures. Senior guard Coco Britt scored eight points. Sophomore guard Xavier Wang scored seven points including two free throws with 11 seconds left to give the Eagles a three-point lead, 52-49.
The Eagles defense was good for most of the game, holding King’s Academy to 31 percent shooting.
RELATED: Memorable run for Diamond Ranch boys basketball ends with loss in CIF state final
Back-to-back baskets by Diop gave San Gabriel Academy a 48-36 lead. That’s when the unraveling began for the Eagles. The King’s Academy press began creating turnovers that led to baskets for the Knights, and San Gabriel Academy committed several costly fouls.
King’s Academy junior guard Claxton Ladine made a 3-pointer with 20 seconds to go to cut the San Gabriel Academy lead to 50-49.
Wang made his two free throws to make it 52-49 and the Knights’ Karan Kolappa put in a layup at the buzzer for the final one-point margin.
“Lost some years off my life there,” said San Gabriel Academy coach Daniel Piepoli.
Piepolio regretted calling the team’s final timeout late in the contest when Wang dove on a loose ball. The officials signaled the timeout just before a jump ball would have been called.
“I went to the scorer’s table and said I hope that doesn’t come back to bite me,” he said. “And it definitely did. We didn’t have a timeout to stop them, try to draw something up.”
The game appeared to be headed for a one-sided result early when San Gabriel Academy built a 17-point lead in the second quarter. King’s Academy got hot in the third quarter and reduced the lead to four points in the quarter.
King’s Academy pulled with four points again in the fourth quarter before San Gabriel Academy did a better job of taking care of the basketball and resumed using its height advantage to regain control.
The teams traded the lead for most of the first quarter. San Gabriel Academy took the lead for good, 12-10, on one of Diop’s many dunks, the final points of the opening quarter.
Diop’s two-handed slam started a 14-1 run for the Eagles that moved them to a 24-11 lead midway through the second quarter.
The Eagles’ lead reached 17 points, 31-14, at one point and was 31-18 at halftime.
The teams combined for 46 turnovers, 25 by San Gabriel Academy.
The Eagles qualified for the CIF state playoffs by reaching the CIF-SS semifinals, in which they lost to Sage Hill. San Gabriel Academy defeated Maranatha in the CIF SoCal Regional Division III championship game Tuesday to get to the state championship game.
San Gabriel Academy is young, talented and playing for its first state basketball championship
Orange County Register
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