SOUTHERN SECTION BASKETBALL PLAYOFFS : Servite Eludes Trabuco Hills’ Traps to Take 58-53 Victory

Servite High School endured everything that Trabuco Hills had to offer Friday night. And the Mustangs had a lot.

Servite faced a variety of defensive strategies, half-court traps, zones, man-to-man and even the dreaded four-guard-full-court-desperation press.

The Friars saw it all and survived for a 58-53 victory in the second round of the Southern Section 3-AA playoffs at Servite. The Friars will play Centennial in the quarterfinals Tuesday.

The victory also snapped Trabuco Hills’ 11-game winning streak and denied the Mustangs a chance to repeat as champions. Trabuco Hills won the 3-A title last season.

The Friars (15-10) had a 12-point lead all but evaporate in a span of 1 minute 13 seconds in the fourth quarter. They held on with patience and accurate free throw shooting.

Servite made 13 of 15 free throws in the fourth quarter.

“Trabuco Hills just keeps coming at you,” Servite Coach Richard Smith said. “They can score eight points in a blink of an eye.”

Servite appeared to have things well in hand at the start of the fourth quarter. A pair of free throws by Jamie Rosenkranz gave the Friars a 43-31 lead with 7:23 left.

It was then that the Mustangs went to their mayhem unit, which features four guards and a whole lot of pressure. Trabuco Hills forced eight turnovers in the fourth quarter.

Sparked by Tim Manning, the Mustangs (17-9) went on an 8-0 run to pull within two points.

Manning, who had 20 points and five steals, made two three-point field goals during the run. The Mustangs scored off three consecutive turnovers and trailed, 43-41, with 6:10 left.

Beau Hossler had a chance to tie the score, but missed the front end of a one-and-one. Trabuco Hills never got closer than three points after that.

Manning also missed a one-and-one opportunity in the fourth quarter.

The Mustangs made only eight of 15 free throws. The Friars made 17 of 25.

“The difference was that Servite made its free throws and we didn’t make ours,” Trabuco Hills Coach Rainer Wulf said.

The Friars were able to use their height advantage throughout most of the game. Forward Alan Anderson (6-feet-4) and center Steve Marusich (6-7) dominated inside.

Servite outrebounded Trabuco Hills, 33-22.

Anderson, a sophomore, scored 17 points, including six in the fourth quarter, and 10 rebounds.

Marusich had 14 points and 10 rebounds. He scored five consecutive points in the third quarter to give the Friars a 34-24 lead.

At that point, Smith decided to slow the tempo.

“They can score in waves,” Smith said. “We wanted to take as much time off the clock as we could between those Waves.”

The Friars extended their defense to take away the three-point field goal. In doing so, they allowed the Mustangs to drive to the basket, where Marusich was waiting.

Marusich blocked five shots.