Mater Dei Faces a Tough Test in Tournament

Mater Dei High School’s basketball team, which hasn’t lost a tournament game in four years, plays Whitehaven High of Memphis, Tenn., tonight at 6:30 in the quarterfinals of the King Cotton Tournament in the Pine Bluff Convention Center.

Whitehaven defeated host Pine Bluff, 60-43, Tuesday night behind 6-foot, 5-inch junior forward Ernest Smith, who scored 35 points and grabbed 9 rebounds.

The Monarchs, who received a first-round bye, improved to 10-0 with their victory over Santa Ana Tuesday night in the championship game of the Orange Tournament. They’ll be led by 6-11 center LeRon Ellis, who averages 25 points a game.

The last Mater Dei tournament loss came in the second round of the 1982 Tournament of Champions, when Long Beach Poly won in overtime. But Mater Dei will be hard-pressed to win its 13th straight tournament championship.

The King Cotton field figures to be the toughest that Coach Gary McKnight and the Monarchs have ever faced.

In its fourth year, the 12-team tournament includes five schools rated among the top 25 in the nation by USA Today.

Heading the field is Flint Hill Prep of Oakton, Va., the No. 1 team in the nation and defending King Cotton champion. Mater Dei is ranked ninth. Other top 25 teams are Christian Brothers High of Lincroft, N.J. (12th), Miami Hialeah Lakes High of Hialeah, Fla. (14th) and Booker T. Washington High of Tulsa, Okla. (22th).