Brandon McCoy is sensational for St. John Bosco in OT win
Brandon McCoy is a teenage basketball prodigy. At 6 feet 4, the 16-year-old junior guard at St. John Bosco possesses skills and athleticism that leave fans gushing with respect. He was doing everything against unbeaten Richmond Salesian in the Classic at Damien Platinum Division semifinal Friday.
On defense, his ball pressure forced a backcourt violation. Other times, he made blocks. He had two dunks. He handled the ball like a true point guard. Whatever the Braves needed, he delivered. He made 11 of 14 shots and came through with 28 points in St. John Bosco’s 68-66 overtime victory. St. John Bosco will play either Damien or Eastvale Roosevelt in the final Saturday at 8:30 p.m.
“I feel big-time players come up in big games,” McCoy said.
Said coach Matt Dunn: “He made some huge shots for us.”
It took a drive to the basket and score from Elzie Harrington with 31 seconds left in overtime to give St. John Bosco a two-point lead. Harrington aggressively attacked the basket and refused to be denied. Earlier in regulation, with a two-point lead and trying to close out the game, the Braves committed a turnover and Salesian’s Alvin Loving tied the score by making a layup with 6.1 seconds left.
It’s possible the game was a preview of the state Open Division championship in March in Sacramento. Both teams are capable of making the final. St. John Bosco is 13-1. Salesian is 12-1. The Braves overcame foul trouble to Jack Turner, who gave the Braves an eight-point lead after his three-pointer to start the third quarter. He went to the bench immediately with his fourth foul, and Salesian went on a 9-0 run. He fouled out at the end of regulation.
St. John Bosco has been winning some close games. The Braves have struggled at times with execution on offense, but Dunn said that will be fixed with more practice. They are playing a stretch of games testing the players physically. Dunn also gave credit to Salesian.
“They are so physical and aggressive,” he said. “It’s hard to play a pretty game against them.”
St. George (Utah) Dixie 74, West Ranch 69: James Evans scored 19 points for West Ranch in a semifinal defeat in the Gold Division at Damien.
San Ramon Valley 67, St. Pius X-St. Matthias 62: Luke Isaak scored 19 points, including a key three-pointer in the fourth quarter, to lift San Ramon Valley into the Gold Division final. Douglas Langford scored 17 points for St. Pius X-St. Matthias.
Corona Centennial 64, American Fork (Utah) 54: Isaiah Rodgers scored 21 points and Eric Freeny had 18 for the Huskies (11-7).
Windward 71, Clovis North 66: The Wildcats continued their strong play against quality teams. Gavin Hightower finished with 25 points and six assists. Jeremiah Hampton had 12 points and 11 rebounds. Connor Amundsen of Clovis North had 42 points.
Etiwanda 74, Crean Lutheran 50: Christian Harris scored 22 points for the 13-1 Eagles.
Heritage Christian 67, Chandler (Ariz.) Basha 62: Dillan Shaw had 24 points and 10 rebounds and Tae Simmons added 23 points and 19 rebounds for Heritage Christian.
Mater Dei 95, Cincinnati Indian Hill 44: Luke Barnett made four threes and finished with 20 points and Brannon Martinsen also had 20 points for 13-1 Mater Dei at Rancho Mirage.
Sierra Canyon 87, Oak Park 37: In Santa Barbara, the Trailblazers improved to 12-1. Bryce Cofield scored 20 points and Justin Pippen had 18.
JSerra 75, Hamburg (N.Y.). St. Francis 57: Aidan Fowler scored 20 points and Sebastian Rancik had 18 for JSerra.
Maranatha 51, Grant 48: Ronald Merrill scored 14 points for the Lancers in defeat.
Viewpoint 49, Warren 35: Aeneas Grullon scored 19 points for 10-4 Viewpoint.
Foothill 64, Birmingham 35: Isaiah Bernard finished with 14 points for Foothill.
San Gabriel Academy 81, Lynwood 62: Jason Crowe Jr. scored 40 points for Lynwood. Mahamadou Diop had 30 points for San Gabriel Academy.
Newbury Park 72, Dos Pueblos 54: Alex Depatie contributed 31 points, making six threes, for Newbury Park (12-5).
Santa Margarita 75, Bishop O’Dowd 39: Bryaden Kyman led Santa Margarita with 25 points.
Blair 96, Burbank 82: OJ Blankson had 44 points for Burbank.
Chatsworth 73, Sierra Pacific 62: Alijah Arenas poured in 44 points for the Chancellors (7-8). On Thursday, Arenas had 45 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists in a victory over Burroughs.
Pilibos 79, Oaks Hills 70: Anto Balian finished with 38 points for Pilibos.
Crescenta Valley 65, Granada Hills 63: Vaughn Zagarian made a basket with one second left in overtime to deliver a victory for the Falcons. He made five threes and finished with 22 points.
Girls’ basketball
DeSoto (Texas) 54, Mater Dei 48: Emily Shaw scored 19 points, making five threes, for the Monarchs in Oregon.
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.