st. francis

When it’s Harvey Kitani versus David Rebibo in a high school basketball coaching matchup, you know it’s going to be a defensive grind. They demand defensive production, so Rolling Hills Prep and Harvard-Westlake went at it for 32 minutes on Saturday night at St. Francis.

It took four consecutive free throws by Joe Sterling in the final 21 seconds for Harvard-Westlake (17-2) to hold on for a 50-46 victory. About the only mistake Rolling Hills Prep (13-5) made was choosing to foul Sterling, well known as a clutch free-throw shooter. But the Huskies had no choice after a three by Aaron Heinze got them to within 48-46 with 2.6 seconds left.

Sterling finished with 16 points. Pierce Thompson had 14 points and Dominique Bentho added 11 points and 12 rebounds. Nick Welch Jr. had a big game for Rolling Hills Prep with 21 points on eight-for-14 shooting. Carter Fulton added 10 points.

Santa Margarita 72, Fairfax 41: The Eagles (19-2) opened a 21-2 lead after the first quarter and cruised to victory at St. Francis. Brayden Kyman scored 21 points, Kaiden Bailey had 17 and Drew Anderson had 15.

St. Pius X-St. Matthias 67, JSerra 62: Kayleb Kearse finished with 27 points in the victory. Jaden Bailes had 30 points for JSerra.

Sierra Canyon 77, Phoenix St. Mary’s 45: The Trailblazers (13-1) tuned up for the start of Mission League play with a rout in Arizona. Brandon McCoy scored 18 points and Brannon Martinsen had 17.

Chaminade 70, Palos Verdes 44: Temi Olafisoye had 17 points for the 18-1 Eagles.

Thousand Oaks 53, Oak Park 46: The Lancers won their 16th consecutive game to stay unbeaten. Gabriel Chin had 14 points.

Sherman Oaks Notre Dame 67, Layton Christian (Utah) 64: NaVorro Bowman led the Knights (13-4) with 24 points. Josiah Nance added 16 points.

Bishop Montgomery 71, Palisades 68: Austin Kirksey had 24 points and Tarron Williams scored 22 points to help Bishop Montgomery improve to 15-2. Freshman Phillip Reed scored 24 points for Palisades.

Crespi 60, Modesto Christian 49: The Celts improved to 13-6.

St. John Bosco 62, Chandler (Ariz.) Basha 54: Christian Collins scored 31 points and Max Ellis had 22 for the Braves in a win in Arizona.

Mayfair 69, Cypress 56: Josiah Johnson’s 27 points helped Mayfair improve to 8-5.

Inglewood 98, Pasadena 97: Jason Crowe Jr. made the game-winning shot in overtime and finished with 51 points for Inglewood.

Girls basketball

Harvard-Westlake 51, Phoenix Desert Vista 39: Freshman Lucia Khamenia finished with 24 points for Harvard-Westlake.

Brentwood 59, Cardinal Newman 53: The Eagles improved to 9-4. Kelsey Sugar scored 24 points.

Saugus 57, Birmingham 52: Kayla Tanijiri had 16 points for Birmingham (13-3).

With a week to go before opening the Trinity League with a showdown against St. John Bosco at home, Santa Margarita continued its preparation Friday night, defeating defending state Open Division champion Eastvale Roosevelt 65-49 at JSerra.

The Eagles are 18-2 and have one final tuneup Saturday against Fairfax at St. Francis before facing the Braves on Jan. 9.

Santa Margarita almost lost a big lead in the second half before prevailing. The Eagles led 16-2 to start the game. Drew Anderson had 19 points and 10 rebounds. Kaiden Bailey added 14 points and Brayden Kyman 13.

St. Francis 58, Fairfax 41: The Golden Knights (15-2) received 18 points, 11 rebounds, 10 blocks and eight assists from center Cherif Millogo.

Seattle Rainier Beach 75, Mater Dei 67: Former Sherman Oaks Notre Dame senior Tyran Stokes had 26 points for Rainier Beach in Arizona. Zain Majeed led Mater Dei with 28 points.

Servite 76, Rolling Hills Prep 72: The Friars picked up a good nonleague victory before opening Trinity League play.

Campbell Hall 61, Arcadia 54: The Vikings picked up their biggest win of the season. Ean Britt finished with 21 points. Christian Rogers had 15 points.

Inglewood 112, St. Paul 57: Jason Crowe Jr., averaging 43.9 points, scored 50 points in the win at Morningside.

Redondo Union 89, Santa Barbara 54: Chace Holley scored 41 points for the Sea Hawks (15-3).

Calabasas 66, El Camino Real 49: Johnny Thyfault had 17 points for Calabasas.

La Mirada 68, Crespi 57: The Matadores (11-6) helped their Southern Section Open Division playoff hopes by knocking off the Celts. Jordyn Houston had 17 points.

Girls basketball

Ontario Christian 100, Carondelet 49: There’s no slowing down 16-0 Ontario Christian. Tatianna Griffin had 32 points and 11 rebounds. Kaleena Smith added 29 points.

Brentwood 73, Thousand Oaks 50: The Eagles handed Thousand Oaks its second loss of the season. Reena White scored 21 points.

Troy 59, Sonora 42: Lexi Joko scored a career-high 26 points for Troy in a league opener.

The day after Christmas is for more than seeking bargain Christmas sales or making returns on gifts. It’s also the first chance for high school basketball players who had to sit out the first half of the season after transferring to make their debuts.

At the Classic at Damien, Loyola got an immediate lift in a 67-51 win over Bakersfield Christian on Friday. Its two leading scorers were sit-out period players. Deuce Newt, a transfer from Campbell Hall, scored 24 points and Omari Cuffe, a transfer from St. Pius X-St. Matthias, had 17 points.

No team has waited more patiently than Corona Centennial’s girls’ basketball team. Knowing its top transfer students wouldn’t be eligible until Dec. 26, the Huskies didn’t play any games until Friday’s 90-31 win over Camarillo. Perhaps this is the trend of the future. Centennial is 1-0 and expected to be a Southern Section Open Division playoff team.

Can you say built for the playoffs?

Boys’ basketball

Crean Lutheran 62, Meridian (Id.) Owyhee 59: The Saints knocked off a team that beat Harvard-Westlake last week in Hawaii. Hunter Caplan scored 20 points.

Crespi 73, Layton (Utah) Christian 70 (OT): The Celts won in overtime. Isaiah Barnes had 28 points, nine rebounds and five assists.

Redondo Union 110, Fresno Clovis North 56: SJ Madison had 30 points for the Sea Hawks.

St. John Bosco 56, Utah American Fork 39: Christian Collins led the Braves with 27 points.

Arcadia 64, Mayfair 59: Owen Eteuati-Edwards had 22 points for Arcadia, setting up a Saturday showdown with San Gabriel Academy.

San Gabriel Academy 66, Palisades 57: Freshman Zach Arnold contributed 14 points for San Gabriel Academy.

Moorpark 57, Fairfax 47: Sophomore Logan Stotts had 16 points for Moorpark.

Bogart (Ga.) North Oconee 65, St. Pius X-St. Matthias 64: Freshman Darrellreon Morris had 21 points in a buzzer-beater loss.

Milken 65, Bishop Alemany 55: Grayson Coleman scored 24 points for 7-7 Milken. Sophomore Ethan Frank, a transfer from Crespi, made his season debut for Milken, scoring nine points and getting seven rounds.

Etiwanda 53, San Joaquin Memorial 50: Armaun Pollock’s 14 points helpd the Eagles (15-0) stay unbeaten.

Mira Costa 55, La Costa Canyon 44: The Mustangs improved to 14-1 with a win in Carlsbad. Jayden Kainsinger scored 20 points.

La Habra 63, Washington Prep 48: Acen Jimenez finished with 27 points for La Habra.

St. Francis 68, Burroughs 23: Luke Paulus had 23 points for St. Francis.

Bishop Montgomery 73, Sylmar 41: Twins Terron and Tarron Williams combined for 30 points and 18 rebounds.

Harvard-Westlake 70, Germany Urspring 44: Joe Sterling made seven threes and finished with 31 points.

Brentwood 62, Taft 52: Ethan Hill finished with 22 points and 11 rebounds.

Mater Dei 98, Otay Ranch 50: Zain Majeed, a transfer from IMG Academy, had 20 points in his debut for Mater Dei.

Sherman Oaks Notre Dame 55, Idaho Lake City 45: Josiah Nance, back from injury, had nine points for the Knights as they slowly get him back into shape. NaVorro Bowman led the way with 17 points.

Thousand Oaks 68, Davis Sr. 61: The Lancers stayed unbeaten behind Dylan McCord, who made seven threes and had 36 points.

Viewpoint 67, Washington Roosevelt 43: Solomon Clanton Jr. had 21 points.

Rolling Hills Prep 51, California 50: Carter Fulton had 27 points for 11-2 Rolling Hills Prep.

Calabasas 85, Eastside 58: Tristan Cordero had 28 points and Calvin Goetz 27 points for the Coyotes.

JSerra 68, Democracy Prep 64: Early Bryson scored 23 points and Jaden Bailes 22 points in San Diego.

St. Bernard 65, Washington Mount Si 64: Brandon Granger had 34 points for St. Bernard.

Girls’ basketball

Troy 57, King/Drew 46: Mei-Ling Perry led the way with 24 points for 10-3 Troy.

Sierra Canyon 82, Rancho Cucamonga 36: Sophomores Rosie Oladokum and Cherri Hatter each scored 18 points for the Trailblazers.