Flintridge Prep boys’ basketball comes up short in upset bid of Blair
LA CAÑADA — Entering the fourth quarter, the Flintridge Prep boys’ basketball team was in position to pull off an upset and shake up the CIF southern Section Division IV-AA playoff bracket.
Flintridge Prep trailed by one point entering the final quarter against second-seeded Blair in a second-round home contest.
Then Flintridge Prep saw its hopes dashed, as Blair registered a 62-53 victory, as the Vikings pulled away with 23 fourth-quarter points.
“We felt very good about ourselves going into the fourth quarter,” said Flintridge Prep Coach Garrett Ohara, who guided the Rebels to the Division V-AA championship game and a state appearance last season. “We were executing our plan on defense and we believed we had a shot at it.
“We were right there. Some things didn’t go our way and Blair made some big plays and shots.”
Blair (22-6) got 10 fourth-quarter points from Dezmond Washington to derail Flintridge Prep (12-9), winning the stanza, 23-15.
Blair, which finished second in the Rio Hondo League behind La Cañada, held a 39-38 lead following three quarters. Washington had three offensive rebounds in the fourth quarter and converted them into four points.
Washington grabbed an offensive rebound and scored a basket to give the Vikings a 45-40 lead with 5:34 left in the fourth quarter. Blair then got a big three-pointer from Jack Dakan to extend the lead to 53-44 with 3:28 to go.
Flintridge Prep, which finished second in the Prep League behind rival Pasadena Poly, could get no closer.
Washington finished with a team-high 22 points, nine rebounds and five assists for Blair, which received 12 points and five assists from Caleb Smith.
Flintridge Prep, which featured nine seniors and began the playoffs Wednesday with a win against Quartz Hill, got a team-best 22 points from Jake Althouse. Althouse collected 14 second-half points, including eight in the third quarter to keep the Rebels within striking distance.
“We thought we were in a good situation going into the fourth quarter,” Althouse said. “We were right where we wanted to be and then we got into some foul trouble.
“Blair went out there and made some big shots to pull away. We had a lot of close games throughout the year and I thought we played well tonight.”
The Rebels also received seven points from Beau Detchemendy, six points, eight rebounds and four assists from Cameron Wu and six points, six rebounds and four assists from Kendall Kikkawa.
The teams were tied at 23 at halftime.
“It’s anybody’s game going into the last quarter,” Blair Coach Alon Margalit said. “We have a lot of players with experience and that turned out to be huge.
“Flintridge Prep played a very good game and did a good job taking our guards out of the play. We needed a big effort from Dezmond. It was a tough game.”
