Some wondered just how good Mater Dei really was after a weak nonleague schedule. Then the Monarchs went 3-0 this week in Trinity League competition with wins over JSerra and St. John Bosco. End of debate.
“We played fundamentally sound,” Mater Dei coach Gary McKnight said.
No one was more impressive than 6-foot-5 junior Brandon Benjamin, who came off the bench to make nine of 10 shots and finish with 18 points. All of his points came around the basket. Defenders just don’t know what to do to prevent him from scoring because of the way he uses his body.
“I think I have to thank my dad for how he taught me to use my body,” Benjamin said.
Added McKnight: “He’s phenomenal inside. He’s very unique.”
(Craig Weston)
Benjamin and sophomore Brannon Martinsen (19 points) provided Mater Dei with inside power. Luke Barnett made four three-pointers and scored 16 points to combine with Owen Verna’s 15 points for outside contributions. Brandon McCoy led St. John Bosco (15-3, 2-1) with 23 points.
Sherman Oaks Notre Dame 74, De La Salle 70: It took two overtimes for unbeaten Notre Dame (16-0) to win. Mercy Miller scored 39 points and had 19 rebounds. Lino Mark made clutch free throws in the second overtime and finished with 20 points.
St. Augustine 74, Loyola 57: Jonas de Krassel and Hugh Vandeweghe each scored 11 points for Loyola.
San Joaquin Memorial 79, St. Bernard 73: Parker Spees, a 6-7 sophomore, scored 26 points and made four threes for San Joaquin Memorial before leaving because of an ankle injury. Josh Palmer scored 21 points, Kendyl Sanders had 17 points and Tajh Ariza 15 for St. Bernard.
Eastvale Roosevelt 62, St. Joseph 61: Brayden Burries made a jump shot with five seconds left and finished with 26 points in Roosevelt’s come-from-behind victory.
Harvard-Westlake 74, Heritage Christian 62: The Wolverines (17-1) received 21 points from Trent Perry and 20 from Nikolas Khamenia.
Lynwood 90, Chatsworth 76: In a battle of high-scoring sophomores, Lynwood’s Jason Crowe Jr. scored 47 points and Chatsworth’s Alijah Arenas had 38 points.
La Mirada 76, Rancho Cucamonga 70: Gene Roebuck scored 35 points in La Mirada’s double-overtime victory. Aaron Glass had 34 points for Rancho Cucamonga.
Anaheim Canyon 54, Crespi 50: Jeremy Loredo finisherd with 14 points for Canyon (13-4).
Rancho Verde 71, Valencia 53: Caelin Anderson finished with 19 points for Rancho Verde (17-2). Bryce Bedgood had 15 points for Valencia.
Wiseburn Da Vinci 62, Narbonne 47: Ahmose Daniels had 18 points and 10 rebounds for Da Vinci.
Long Beach Poly 62, Gardena Serra 53: Jovani Ruff scored 24 points for the Jackrabbits. Maximo Adams led Serra with 24 points.
Long Beach Jordan 60, Fairfax 45: Romello McRae led Fairfax with 19 points. Later, McRae scored 18 points in a 71-69 loss to Blair.
Brentwood 56, St. Petersburg (Fla.) Northeast 45: Freshman Hayden Lichtenstein finished with 18 points for Brentwood.
Crossroads 62, Bishop Montgomery 47: EJ Vernon led Crossroads with 24 points.
Windward 63, Foothill 45: The Wildcats improved to 14-3. Jeremiah Hampton scored 15 points.
St. Anthony 73, King/Drew 66: Aman Haynes had 22 points and 11 rebounds for St. Anthony. Donald Thompson scored 21 points for King/Drew.
San Gabriel Academy 49, St. Francis 46: Mazi Mosley had 26 points for St. Francis.
Sierra Canyon 51, St. Pius X-St. Matthias 42: Bryce Cofield scored 16 points for Sierra Canyon.
Corona Centennial 78, Campbell Hall 66: The Huskies continued their improved play going into a league showdown on Tu3esday night at home against Roosevelt.
West Ranch 74, Etiwanda 60: West Ranch handed Etiwanda only its second loss of the season. James Evans scored 21 points.
Girls’ basketball
Chaminade 80, South Pasadena 70: Payton Montgomery finished with 32 points for Chaminade.
Windward 56, Bonita 40: Olivia Lagao led Windward with 22 points.
Louisville 56, Sherman Oaks Notre Dame 48: Taylor Westbrook scored 20 points for Louisville (14-3).
Cardinal Newman 64, Brentwood 56: Lev Feiman had 19 points and Jocelyn Pascual scored 18 for Brentwood.
Cleveland 90, Sylmar 55: Souljah Niles scored 23 points for the Cavaliers (7-6), who begin West Valley League play next week with a five-game winning streak.
Mater Dei 84, Millenium (Az.) 31: Jenessa Cotton and Emily Shaw each contributed 24 points for the 14-5 Monarchs.
Ontario Christian 91, Village Christian 50: Freshman Kaleena Smith scored 36 points for Ontario Christian.