SOUTHERN SECTION BOYS’ BASKETBALL PLAYOFF PREVIEW : DIVISION IV : Laguna Beach Has a Way to Go to Finals

If the results are the same as the past two seasons, organizers of the Southern Section Division IV-AA basketball tournament might want to rename it the Oxnard Santa Clara Invitational.

Santa Clara, the two-time defending champion, is top-seeded and heavily favored to win a third consecutive title.

But before the trophy gets handed to the Saints (21-3) and Coach Lou Cvijanovich, there’s a little matter of playing the tournament.

“I’ve seen Santa Clara twice this year and they have five guys who can play,” Laguna Beach Coach Bret Fleming said. “But I liked them because they looked like they could be pressed full court, and that’s something we like to do.”

Unseeded Laguna Beach (14-10) wouldn’t meet Santa Clara until the finals, and the Artists have a long way to go before that.

If the Artists beat Marshall (5-16) tonight, they play at Los Angeles Cathedral (11-11) in the first round Friday.

Fleming wasn’t happy with the draw, but said the Artists have a good shot at reaching the quarterfinals, where they could face third-seeded Downey Pius X.

The Artists reached the Division IV-A final two years ago with a small lineup similar to this season’s team. And point guard Darren Gravley (18.2 points, 41% from three-point range) can score from anywhere.

“Our kids were a little down during the league season because they thought they couldn’t beat teams like Trabuco Hills and Estancia,” Fleming said. “But the kids feel the playoffs are a second season for them--an opportunity to win something.”

Division IV-A--Third-seeded Santa Monica St. Monica is the defending IV-A champion, but top-seeded Los Angeles Verbum Dei is determined to finally win it all.

Verbum Dei (17-6) has come up empty-handed in the Division IV-AA finals the past two years, before moving down to IV-A this season. The Eagles won the tough Camino Real League this season.

“Verbum Dei is way up there,” Santa Ana Calvary Chapel Coach Steve Middleton said. “They have the athletes, the size and the tradition. But you can’t forget teams like St. Monica and Crossroads.”

Or Calvary Chapel.

The Eagles won the Arrowhead League this season, their second of varsity play. They’re outscoring opponents by more than 25 points per game and have two of the division’s best players in forwards Sabe Younger and John O’Brien.

Calvary Chapel earned a first-round bye and will play host to the winner of the Orange Lutheran-Montebello Cantwell Sacred Heart game next Tuesday.

But Middleton said the bye has two disadvantages--an 11-day layoff between the end of the regular season and the playoffs, and a possible second-round matchup with Orange Lutheran.

“Orange Lutheran is loaded,” Middleton said. “We have one of the toughest draws of any team that got a first-round bye, so I have some mixed feelings about it.

“Having 11 days off is a negative, too. After the league season, you get into a rhythm of playing every three or four days.”

Still, Middleton said he likes his team’s chances. The Eagles return 10 players from last season’s team, six who are 6 feet 3 or taller.

“I wrote out our goal at the start of the season, sealed it in an envelope and put it in my desk,” Middleton said. “The goal was to get to the second round of the playoffs. I guess we’ve already done that by the luck of the draw.”

Division IV-AA at a Glance

Defending champion: Oxnard Santa Clara.

Top teams: Banning (20-4), Big Bear (15-8), Downey Pius X (19-5), Long Beach St. Anthony (16-9), Nordhoff (13-10), Oxnard Santa Clara (21-3).

Dark horse: Laguna Beach (14-10).

Top players: Stevie Amar (Santa Clara), Chris Cole (Santa Clara), Trigg Garner (Laguna Beach), Darren Gravley (Laguna Beach), Cornelias Harper (Banning), Joshua Holt (Palo Verde), Lamar Malone (Banning), Michael O’Quinn (Pius X), Jeff Phipps (Palo Verde), Tom Ravensberg (Laguna Beach), Jacobi Thompson (Pius X).

Best draw: Nordhoff could meet Banning in the second round, but an upset could give Nordhoff a clear path to the finals.

Worst draw: Laguna Beach is the only team over .500 playing in a qualifying game. If the Artists beat Marshall (5-16) tonight, they play at Los Angeles Cathedral (11-11) in the first round Friday.

Notes: Top-seeded Santa Clara is favored to win a third consecutive title. The Saints started their streak during Shon Tarver’s senior season, in which they went on to win the State title. Second-seeded Banning is led by Malone (19 points per game) and Harper (17.4 points). Don’t rule out Laguna Beach, despite the Artists’ 4-6 Pacific Coast League record. The league was one of the toughest in Orange County this season, and during the Orange Holiday Tournament in December, the Artists showed they play well in a tournament format.

Division IV-A at a Glance

Defending champion: Santa Monica St. Monica.

Top teams: Burbank Bell-Jeff (19-4), Santa Ana Calvary Chapel (17-5), Los Angeles Verbum Dei (17-6), Rosamond (20-2), St. Monica (15-10).

Dark horse: Orange Lutheran (13-12).

Top players: Mark Berokoff (Whittier Christian), Anthony Brown (Verbum Dei), Jeff Courvoisier (Orange Lutheran), Kyle Culverson (Rosamond), Alex Davis (St. Monica), Robert King (Verbum Dei), Brian Lee (Bell-Jeff), Chad Mihr (Orange Lutheran), John O’Brien (Calvary Chapel), Sabe Younger (Calvary Chapel).

Best draw: Calvary Chapel received a first-round bye and will play the winner of the Orange Lutheran-Montebello Cantwell game in the second round next Tuesday.

Worst draw: Whittier Christian plays Riverside Notre Dame in the first round and, with a victory, would face top-seeded Verbum Dei in the second round.

Notes: This could finally be the year for Verbum Dei, which has reached the finals the past two years but has yet to win the championship. The Eagles feature the division’s top backcourt in King (18.4 points per game) and Brown (15.3 points). Calvary Chapel, the Arrowhead League champion, has been impressive this season, outscoring opponents 73.3 to 48.9. Whittier Christian’s main offensive threat is Berokoff, who’s averaging 22.4 points.