FULLERTON BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT : Western Withstands Fullerton’s Rally, 64-57

Western High School, seemingly untouchable through its first seven games, barely survived a furious fourth-quarter rally to remain undefeated.

The Pioneers held off Fullerton, 64-57, Thursday in the semifinals of the Fullerton Tournament. It was the closest game of the year for Western, which had won its previous games by 20 points or more.

The Pioneers (8-0) will play Cerritos in the championship game at 8 tonight and will need more consistency to keep its perfect record.

Western, which led by as many 18 points, saw its lead cut to three with 47 seconds left. Tom Barraza finally put an end to the slide by making six free throws in the final 36 seconds.

“For some reason--I don’t know why--we can’t seem to sustain an entire game,” Western Coach Greg Hoffman said. “We play good defense and work hard, but sometimes we lose our momentum.”

The Pioneers, ranked sixth in Orange County, appeared to have the game well in hand after three quarters. Their defense had stifled Fullerton, which had scored only 29 points to that point.

However, foul trouble and an inability to make free throws nearly brought down Western.

Center Nurishi Stevenson fouled out with 6 minutes 43 seconds left. He had scored only six points but had eight rebounds and three blocked shots.

With Stevenson gone, the Fullerton players drove to the basket without looking over their shoulders. Craig Olson and Chris Hartshom led a 23-11 run to cut the deficit to 58-55 with 47 seconds left.

Olson scored 19 points, eight in the fourth quarter. Hartshom scored all nine of his points in the final five minutes.

Western missed eight of 15 free throws until the final 36 seconds. Barraza, who scored 17 points, missed three one-and-one opportunities before making seven of his last eight free throws.

“We lost some concentration, but Tom recovered at the end,” Hoffman said.

Through three quarters, the Pioneers’ concentration was fine. They forced 16 turnovers in the first half and led, 34-18, at halftime.

Steve Siefkan scored 11 points in the first half and finished with 20.

In the other semifinal game:

Cerritos 42, Buena Park 37--The Dons went on a 12-2 run during the final 4:20 for the victory. The score was tied, 37-37, with 1:40 left when Buena Park Coach Ed Matillo was called for a technical foul. Mark Flick made one of two free throws to give Cerritos (7-2) the lead. Norman Longaza made two free throws with 40 seconds left to put Cerritos ahead, 40-37. Buena Park had a chance to tie, but Bryan Baylor’s three-point attempt was blocked by Flick, who then dribbled the length of the court for a reverse dunk. Flick, a 6-foot-8 senior, finished with 24 points and 17 rebounds.

In the consolation semifinals:

La Mirada 56, Los Amigos 35--Kyle Hambick scored 17 points for La Mirada.

Garden Grove 77, Sonora 59--Mark Perry scored 32 points for Garden Grove. Chris St. Clair scored 23 for Sonora.