GIRLS BASKETBALL PLAYOFFS : 3 Teams Bay Trying for Semifinal Spots in CIF and City Basketball Playoffs

Three South Bay basketball teams will attempt to reach the last round of the playoffs tonight in semifinal games in the Southern Section and L.A. City Section tournaments.

Carson (16-7) faces top-seeded Manual Arts (23-0), ranked fifth in the nation by USA Today, in the L.A. City 4-A semifinals at 7:30 at the Sports Arena. The other semifinal, matching Crenshaw (19-2) and Fairfax (13-11), follows at 9:15.

Carson advanced in the City with a 66-61 win over Dorsey on Wednesday. Guard Ray Bennett led the Colts with 23 points and center Vince Washington added 18. Manual Arts advanced with an 80-69 victory over Washington.

In Southern Section semifinals, fourth-seeded Morningside (23-4) meets surprising Corona del Mar (18-9) in a 3-A game at Inglewood High, while El Segundo (15-10) faces Whittier Christian (20-6) in a 2-AA game at Sonora High in La Habra. Both start at 7:30.

Corona del Mar spoiled an all-South Bay matchup by upsetting top-seeded Rolling Hills, 69-63, Wednesday. The Sea Kings, third-place finishers in the Sea View League, favor physical, low-scoring games.

“If they want to play physical, that’s fine, but they’ll have to play with us,” said Morningside Co-Coach Ron Randle, whose team advanced with a 75-72 win over Brea-Olinda. “We can mix it up with anybody.”

Forwards Eddie Scott and Chris Vance and guard Kenny Jones head a balanced attack for the Monarchs, who have won 19 consecutive games.

El Segundo, led by senior forward Shawn Foster, goes against fourth-seeded Whittier Christian after bumping off top-seeded Cabrillo, 73-70, last week.