SAN DIEGO PREP BASKETBALL : Roundup : St. Augustine Presses Hoover for 52-50 Win

St. Augustine rallied from a five-point deficit with 1:30 to play Friday night to beat Hoover, 52-50, and remain undefeated in City Conference boys’ basketball action.

Trailing, 50-45, at Hoover, the Saints (3-0, 9-6) put on a halfcourt press that resulted in two steals. Still, Hoover led, 50-49, and had the ball with 28 seconds left when the Cardinals were called for a rebounding foul.

Leon Olais made both ends of the one-and-one free-throw situation to give the Saints a one-point lead. Seconds later, Joe Shandley stole the ball and made a free throw to give St. Augustine its final margin.

“We had to do a real great job on the defensive end,” St. Augustine Coach Dick Hardick said. “That’s where we won it. We really stole the game.”

St. Augustine center Charlie Applegate led all players with 25 points and 11 rebounds, despite playing most of the fourth quarter with four fouls. Hoover was led by Ken Matthews’ 20 points and Mike Walker’s 13.

St. Augustine, which last won a league championship in 1977, is tied for first with Lincoln (3-0, 8-6). If both teams win Wednesday, they will play for first place next Friday at St. Augustine.

“In recent years we’ve usually only had one real good player,” Hardick said. “This year, we have three who can play with anyone--Applegate, Shandley and Tony Evenson.

In other City Central League action:

Lincoln 55, Crawford 43--The Hornets (3-0, 8-6) maintained their share of first place by knocking off the Colts (0-3, 7-8) at Lincoln. Both teams had trouble from the free-throw line with Crawford hitting on 5 of 18 attempts and Lincoln getting only 9 of 24 from the line. The Hornets won the game despite not having a player score in double figures.

San Diego 61, Christian 57 (OT)--Shawn Perkins scored 20 points to lead the Cavers (1-2, 3-9) past the Patriots (0-3, 9-7) at Christian. San Diego trailed by six points with three minutes to play in regulation before rallying to force the overtime.

AVOCADO LEAGUE

Ramona 72, Escondido 53--The Bulldogs (3-2, 9-6) kept themselves in the playoff chase with an easy win at home. Mike Pendell scored a game-high 22 points for the winners, Robert Cronice added 19 and Stan Clancy had 15. Mason Stevenson scored 12 points to lead Escondido (1-4, 7-9). Ramona led, 19-7, after the first quarter and coasted from there.

Oceanside 61, Carlsbad 48--Junior Seau scored 17 points to lead the No. 10-ranked Pirates (4-2, 14-3) past the Lancers (2-3, 5-10) at Oceanside. The Pirates led only, 26-25, at halftime, but scored the first three baskets of the second half to pull away. Scott Porter led Carlsbad with 18 points.

METRO-SOUTH BAY LEAGUE

Castle Park 87, Coronado 55--The No. 5 Trojans (7-0, 16-1) had four players in double figures and rolled to an easy win at home. Javier Nunez led all scorers with 21, followed by John Stanton (14), Antwon Lincoln (13) and Vince Bucca (11). John Malott scored 14 for Coronado (2-6, 4-13). CITY EASTERN LEAGUE

Morse 68, Madison 58--Chris Jeter scored 19 points and Lonnie Wade added 11 to lead the No. 3 Tigers (3-0, 11-3) at home. Eric Jackson of No. 8 Madison (0-3, 9-6) led all scorers with 11. DaRell Watson scored 11 and Jimmie Dean added 10 for the Warhawks.

Point Loma 61, Patrick Henry 54--The Pointers, the only City Eastern team not ranked when league play started, continued to be a surprise with their win at Henry. Point Loma (2-1, 11-7) had upended No. 4-ranked Serra last Friday before beating the seventh-ranked Patriots (0-3, 7-6).

GROSSMONT LEAGUE

Mount Miguel 56, Grossmont 52--Marcus Edge scored 16 points and Gus Lopez added 15 to lead the No. 9-ranked Matadors (8-1, 11-5) to their eighth straight victory. Mount Miguel trailed, 29-25, at halftime before rallying to avenge their only loss in league play this season. Grossmont (6-3, 9-4) was paced by Donnie Angotti’s 21 points.

Valhalla 49, Monte Vista 48--Troy Toolson hit a 22-footer from the right corner with one second left to lift the Norsemen (3-6, 7-9) past the Monarchs (5-4, 6-9) at Monte Vista. Valhalla trailed, 40-29, after three quarters before rallying to win. Dominick Taitano scored 6 of his game-high 18 points in the final quarter to help Valhalla’s comeback. It was the first time in the 12-year history of Valhalla High that the Norsemen had defeated Monte Vista.

METRO-MESA LEAGUE

Hilltop 56, Bonita Vista 44--The Lancers (4-3, 10-11) held the Barons without a field goal in the fourth quarter to pull away and win this game at Bonita Vista. David Mossman and Sergio Sandoval led Hilltop with 11 points apiece, and Jud Rachow added 15 rebounds. Kip Korzep led Bonita Vista (5-2, 10-6) with 14 points.

Sweetwater 68, Chula Vista 52--Sweetwater (6-1, 12-6) broke open a close game by outscoring the Spartans, 18-6, in the third quarter at Chula Vista. The Red Devils, who led, 53-36, going into the final period, used their height advantage to dominate the boards at both ends of the court. Mahlon Williams led Sweetwater with 16 points. Joe Klanchar of Chula Vista (4-4, 1-11) led all scorers with 18.

PALOMAR LEAGUE

Mt. Carmel 78, Fallbrook 54--Jim Tejcek scored 21 points as the Sundevils (5-0, 12-5)) prepared for next Wednesday’s showdown against Poway. Scott Boggins scored 16, Brendan Kenney added 13 and Tim Coleman had 10 for Mt. Carmel. Chris Hansen scored 15 and Paul Dixon added 14 for host Fallbrook (1-4, 4-12). Fallbrook led, 25-24, with two minutes left in the first half, but the Sundevils scored the last eight points of the half to take a lead they never relinquished.

Poway 83, Orange Glen 75--The top-ranked Titans (5-0, 14-3) led by as many as 23 points in the fourth quarter, then had to hold on as the Patriots (3-2, 7-11) rallied to within 6 before losing at Orange Glen. Jud Buechler and Dominick Johnson of Poway each scored 24 points, and Andy Byrne added 20. For Orange Glen, Steve Clinger scored 22 and Cory Kelly had 20.

CITY WESTERN LEAGUE

University 74, University City 51--The Dons (3-0, 11-6) jumped out to an 18-7 lead and were never threatened while taking sole possession of first place at University City. Sean Giles led University with 22 points, John Turner scored 12 and James Wilson added 10. Durell Sims led University City with 13.

La Jolla 58, Mission Bay 45--Yancy Brown scored 16 points and Mike McLachlan added 15 to lead La Jolla to victory at Mission Bay (2-1, 3-9).