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Boys’ Basketball: Edison moves on, Warriors finished

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For the second time in four years, the Edison High Chargers are headed to the Elite Eight of the CIF Southern Section boys’ basketball playoffs.

For the Brethren Christian Warriors, their postseason run again ended in the quarterfinals.

Edison made reservations late-Tuesday in Oxnard for Friday’s Division 1A quarterfinal. The Chargers went north to take on No. 11-seeded Oxnard in a second-round game, and came away with a 44-35 victory to keep their division title hopes alive.

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Tuesday’s win sends sixth-seeded Edison, the No. 2 team from the Sunset League, on to a Friday matchup with No. 3-seeded Temecula Valley. The Chargers (23-5) will play host to the Golden Bears at 7 p.m.

In a low-scoring game, Edison overcame a 14-12 deficit at Oxnard by outscoring the Yellowjackets (Pacific View League No. 2), 32-21, in the second half.

Junior guard Derek Molina scored a game-high 13 points for Edison. Junior guard AJ Garrity scored 11 points and junior guards Brae Ivey and Jake Haar had nine points each.

“We gutted out the win in a hostile environment,” Edison Coach Rich Boyce said.

The Chargers started the postseason Friday and defeated visiting Rialto (San Andreas League No. 3). Haar hit five three-point shots en route to a game-high 23 points, and Garrity had 14 points.

Edison next faces a Temecula Valley team that on Tuesday advanced following a 68-53 win over No. 14-seed Capistrano Valley (South Coast League No. 3).

The Golden Bears are 25-4 overall.

“They are a very talented, athletic, and well-coached,” Boyce said. “It will be a great challenge.”

Friday’s winner advances to a semifinal game on Tuesday against either No. 2-seed Mission Hills Alemany or No. 7-seed Villa Park.

Brethren Christian’s outstanding season came to a halt Tuesday during a Division 5AA quarterfinal game in Santa Monica. The third-seeded Warriors staged a big, fourth-quarter rally to catch No. 11-seed Pacifica Christian, but couldn’t get over the hump and fell, 67-64, at St. Bernard High. The Warriors were down 13 points with six minutes remaining but fought back to twice tie the score in the final two minutes, the final time, with 30 seconds left to play. The Seawolves scored the winning basket on a three-point shot with eight seconds left.

The Warriors were unable to get off a last-second shot attempt.

Sophomore forward Cameron Griffin led BC in scoring with 20 points. Junior guard Brandon Bryson scored 16 points and senior guard had Caleb Keller 14 points.

Griffin previously scored a game-high 22 points, Bryson 13 points, and Keller 11 points, in a 52-42 second-round win Friday over visiting Los Angeles Pilibos, the tournament’s No. 14 seed.

BC, the second-place team from the Academy League, finished a 24-5 season.

The Warriors reached the quarterfinal round for the sixth consecutive year.

Pacifica Christian has won its three playoff games by a total of 11 points. The Seawolves were coming off a 52-48 upset of No. 6-seeded Pasadena Poly.

“It was a very tough loss,” BC Coach Jon Bahnsen said. “We couldn’t get things going offensively or defensively until we got down big. We fought all the way back and showed lots of heart by tying the game in the last 30 seconds, but came up just short.

“It was still a great season on and off the court with a great group of players.”

Ocean View qualified for the Division 3A playoffs by finishing in a tie for second-place in the Golden West League. The Seahawks upended No. 13-seed Buena Park (Freeway League at-large), 59-44, in a playoff opener Feb. 19, but were eliminated from the tournament Friday in a 70-33 loss at No. 4-seed Oak Park.

In the Seahawks’ 59-44 win over Buena Park, senior forward Tristan Wenschlag scored 14 points and had six rebounds, junior guard/forward Zarek Osborne had 11 points and six rebounds, senior guard Angel Nieves had a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds, senior guard Evan Bunin scored 10 points, and senior guard Alex Merdjanian hit a 65-foot shot to end the first half, and knocked down a long-range three-point shot at the end of the third quarter, and finished with seven points.

Both shots by Merdjanian put the Seahawks up three points (29-26 at the half, 41-38 after three quarters).

Ocean View managed just 14 points in the second half of Friday’s second-round game at Oak Park. Nieves hit four three-point shots and led the Seahawks (13-15) in scoring with 16 points.

“Our team dealt with a great deal of adversity this season, and I am very proud of how our kids responded,” Ocean View Coach Tim Walsh said. “They were resilient. The journey was often difficult, but we never quit. This group of young men improved so much throughout the season, and they showed tremendous character.”

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