Girls’ Southern 3-A/San Diego 3-A : Brea Blown Away by Point Loma, 59-35

What was touted as the state championship in the first round, turned into just another blowout for Point Loma High School girls’ basketball team as it defeated Brea-Olinda, 59-35, Tuesday night in the first round of the Southern California Regionals at San Diego State’s Peterson Gym.

“I’m just glad they took some prisoners,” Brea-Olinda Coach Mark Trakh said. ‘The way they played, they could have beaten us by 40.”

Point Loma, led by All-America forward Terri Mann, have an average winning margin of 56 points this season.

Tuesday night, the 6-foot 2-inch Mann was a force, scoring 14 points and grabbing 12 rebounds, but it was the play of guard Channelle McCoy and forward Michelle Collum that overwhelmed Brea.

McCoy, 5-2, led all scorers with 18 points.

Collum, 6-0, had 15 points and 8 rebounds. She was also given the defensive assignment of covering Brea’s top scorer, Carrie Egan. Collum blocked Egan’s first shot attempt, and made Egan work for her 13 points, three under her season average.

“I can’t say enough about the game Collum played,” Point Loma Coach Lee Trepanier said. “She did a great defensive job on Egan. When she blocked her first shot, I think Egan knew it was going to be a long night.”

Egan did open the scoring for Brea with a 15-foot jump shot, and Brea took a 6-2 lead with 5:51 remaining in the first quarter.

But Collum and Mann combined for nine of their team’s next 11 points as Point Loma led, 15-9, after one quarter.

Point Loma took control of the game in the first six minutes of the second quarter, outscoring Brea, 16-4, to take a 31-13 lead and led, 35-17, at halftime.

By the end of the third quarter, Point Loma held its largest lead of the game, 53-27.

Point Loma (28-1) and Brea (27-4) were the top-ranked teams in the state coming into the regionals. That prompted more than a few, including both coaches, to believe this game would have a lot to do with determining the state champion.

“If this isn’t the final, it’s sure got to be the semifinal,” Trakh said before the game.