Mater Dei puts it together in second quarter and takes 41-22 halftime lead

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There won’t be any double-digit lead for Mission Hills to blow tonight.

Mater Dei obviously wanted to avoid getting chewed out at halftime by Coach Gary McKnight, so the Monarchs stepped on the gas in the second quarter of the Southern California Regional Division II semifinal against the visiting Grizzles, taking a 41-22 lead into the locker room.

You might say the Monarchs also threw down a spike strip on Mission Hills, holding the visitors to single digits in the second quarter.

David Wear has 10 points to lead the Monarchs, who continue to be very selective about who gets on the floor. They finally put a second reserve in the game in the final seconds of the first half.

Jensen Moore had a tip-in late in the second quarter to give him a team-high eight points for the unseeded Grizzlies.

Mater Dei’s gym is only about half full tonight, which is a bit misleading because this crowd would fill up any other high school gym around here.

-- Dan Arritt