LAS VEGAS – One of the teams advanced to the Saturday night Tarkanian Classic Platinum Division championship game by way of a rock’em, sock’em and grind-it-out semifinal.
The other finalist took it altogether different path.
Defending Colorado State Champion Aurora Overland trailed South Jordan (UT) Bingham by eight points with a bit more than eight minutes to go before using its terrific pressure defense and its Jervae Robinson-led offense to pull away for a 64-55 victory in the first of those semifinals late Friday afternoon in the Orleans Hotel Arena.
Next up was the Las Vegas Bishop Gorman vs. Weston (FL) Sagemont clash.
And based upon the way the squad from Florida had performed over the first days in wire-to-wire wins over Pasadena (CA) Maranatha and Plano (TX) Prestonwood Christian Academy, the hoops sign posts pointed toward a down-to-the-wire affair.
As it turned out, the only “down-to-the-wire” interest in it proved to be how soon each team’s deep reserves would get into the game.
The “host” Gaels (Bishop Gorman’s two gymnasiums are the sites for most of the tournament action in five divisions) were on top of Sagemont from jump and cruised to an eased-up, 60-44 victory.
Coach Grant Rice’s club can nab the program’s first-ever championship in the fourth year of the event when it faces Overland in the 6:20 title game Saturday night on BG’s main gymnasium floor.
Santa Ana Mater Dei – led by now-Detroit Pistons’ rookie Stanley Johnson – knocked off the Gaels in the 2012 Platinum finale, with Johnson & Co. beating Oakland Bishop O’Dowd the following December for the crown.
Redondo Beach (CA) Redondo Union – which fell to the Gaels, 63-58, in Thursday night’s second-round action – won the championship last December.
In other divisional finals on Saturday, Lynwood (CA) plays Troy (NY) Redemption Christian Academy in the main gym at for the Gold title at 2:20; San Diego Cathedral Catholic takes on Rock Canyon (CO) on the same floor in the Select championship game at 3:40 and Northridge (UT) plays Rex Putnam (OR) at 1 o’clock on BG’s small gym floor for the Premier championship.
The 6-foot-2 Jervae Robinson, who scored 19 and 21 points, respectively, in Overland’s first two Platinum victories over Long Beach (CA) Poly and Ft. Lauderdale (FL) Dillard, led the way with 18 Friday while fellow seniors Alijah Halliburton (14 points and 15 rebounds) and De’Ron Davis (16 and seven) also played very well.
Brigham Young University-bound Yoeli Childs – as impressive a player as there has been in the tournament over three days – paced Bingham with 21 points and seven rebounds while fast-rising junior forward Samuta Avea had 10 points and nine rebounds.
In the second semifinal the Gaels’ lead was into double figures before five minutes into the contest and Gorman scooted its way to a 16-point advantage (36-20) at intermission.
And Rice was subbing quite freely over the final eight minutes or so of the contest.
Senior center Zach Collins (eight points, 15 rebounds and five blocked shots) and junior wing Charles O’Bannon Jr. (“Chuck”, if you will, dropped in an almost too-easy 15 points) continued to build a compelling argument for “co-Most Outstanding Player” awards should the Gaels knock off Overland Saturday night.
Among the other most impressive performers in the Orleans Arena Friday were the Redemption Christian Academy underclassmen trio of junior Christopher Duarte (the 6-6 junior migrated from the Dominican Republic a few months ago and will prove to be one of the top point guard prospects in the national Class of 2016); 6-11 Brandon McCoy of Cathedral Catholic (he’s the top high school center prospect in the Class of 2017 in the West); and 6-3 sophomore point guard Sam Masten (Rock Canyon).
