PREP BASKETBALL STATE REGIONAL PLAYOFFS : Fremont Boys Come a Long Way

The Fremont High boys’ basketball team spent most of the past two days on a bus traveling between Los Angeles and Fresno.

In between each 216-mile trek, the Pathfinders managed to pull out a 70-67 victory over Clovis West in a State Southern Regional Division I first-round matchup Tuesday night.

There was little chance to savor their success, however. Fremont (31-3) arrived back in Los Angeles Wednesday afternoon, just in time for a quick practice to prepare for tonight’s semifinal contest against top-seeded Santa Ana Mater Dei (32-1). The tipoff is at 7:30 at the UC Irvine Bren Center.

A capacity crowd is expected. Fans were turned away for Mater Dei’s game against Lynwood Tuesday at Ocean View High in Huntington Beach. Reggie Geary scored with two seconds remaining to give the Monarchs a 67-65 victory.

Fremont, the two-time defending City 3-A Division champion, won the Southern Regional last year before losing to Alameda St. Joseph in the State final. The Pathfinders don’t have as much size as last season, but they have more speed. The floor leader, senior guard Todd Whitehead, will make an early debut at the Bren Center. He signed a letter of intent with UC Irvine last fall.

“Mater Dei is a fine team, there is no doubt about that,” Fremont Coach Sam Sullivan said. “But there is no chance our kids will be intimidated by them--just the opposite, in fact. They welcome the opportunity to play Mater Dei. This is a smarter team than I had last year, and they know what to do.”

Whether the fatigue of traveling will be a factor remains to be seen. Last season, the Santa Barbara boys won Southern Regional playoff games at Bakersfield and Long Beach Jordan before losing to Fremont in the final.

“We have to continue to prove we can win on the road,” Sullivan said. “It has been done before, so I know it’s possible.”

Semifinals for boys and girls will be held in five divisions tonight, with winners advancing to Saturday’s championship games at Cal State Dominguez Hills and the Sports Arena. The regional winners will then play Northern Regional champions for State titles March 20-21 at Arco Arena in Sacramento.

The Southern Regional, involving teams from the City, Southern, Central and San Diego sections, produced few surprises in Tuesday’s first round.

Westchester, seeded second, joined Fremont in the Division I semifinals. The Comets defeated Riverside North, 78-69, to earn a semifinal matchup against Mission Viejo Capistrano Valley at Cal State Dominguez Hills.

The Southern Section continued to dominate the regional, with 29 of its 40 entered teams advancing to the semifinals. The section’s Delphic League fared particularly well, with Canoga Park Faith Baptist, North Hollywood Campbell Hall and Bel-Air Prep all victorious in boys’ Division V action.

Only two Central Section teams survived, the Lemoore boys in Division III and the Woodlake girls in Division IV.

The biggest mismatch was in Division III, where the Brea-Olinda girls routed West Hills of Santee, 96-16.

“We shot poorly in the Southern Section finals at the Bren Center Saturday, but I think we got some kids back on the right track,” said Mark Trakh, Brea-Olinda’s coach.