PREP BASKETBALL REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS : Mater Dei Makes the Perfect Match : Division I boys: Alameda St. Joseph and Jason Kidd await after 54-44 victory over Capistrano Valley.

The dream matchup of the state’s best high school basketball player, Jason Kidd, against the state’s best team, Mater Dei, is set for next Saturday in the State Division I championship game.

Mater Dei made its reservation for the showdown in Sacramento with a convincing, 54-44 victory over Capistrano Valley Saturday in the Southern California Regional championship game in front of 12,097 at the Sports Arena.

The Monarchs (34-1) will be seeking their third State title in the past six years, but it won’t be easy. Alameda St. Joseph is the defending State champion and Kidd, a multitalented guard named Parade magazine’s national player of the year, awaits. St. Joseph advanced with a 78-73 victory over Sacramento Jesuit in the Northern Regional final.

“This is a dream come true for all of us,” Mater Dei guard Reggie Geary said. “It’s something you can tell your kids about.”

Mater Dei got defensive to defeat Capistrano Valley for the third time this season. Capistrano Valley (30-4) managed only 24 points in the second half and made only one three-point shot.

“We were able to take the ball away from them the first two times we played them, and we had no reason to think that this game would be any different,” Geary said.

Mater Dei’s one-two scoring punch of Geary and forward Marmet Williams was too much for the Cougars. Williams scored 16 points and had 10 rebounds, and Geary added 12 points and seven assists.

Geary also made six key free throws early in the fourth quarter after Capistrano Valley had rallied to get to within five points, 35-30, with 6:50 remaining.

Capistrano Valley also played great defense, holding Mater Dei scoreless for 7:39 in the third quarter. Unfortunately, the Cougars never got closer than five points and repeatedly hurt their own chances with costly turnovers.

“How sweet it is,” said Mater Dei Coach Gary McKnight. “We’re in the Arco Arena, and I’ve got a week off. Capistrano Valley really played a strong game. They’ve been playing on emotion, kind of like the Lakers were when they lost Magic Johnson.”

Three-point specialist Tom Airey, the Cougars’ best player and leading scorer in the teams’ previous two meetings, sat out his third regional game after breaking a foot in the Southern Section finals last Saturday.

“They (Capistrano Valley) were really cold tonight, but it’s hard to shoot in the big arena,” McKnight said. “Our defense earned it. It took control of the game early and gave us that lead at halftime. The third quarter got a little ugly, but we picked it up in the fourth quarter.”

Mater Dei had Capistrano Valley on the ropes early, outscoring the Cougars, 23-8, during a seven-minute stretch in the first half and held a 29-20 lead at halftime.

Capistrano Valley committed eight turnovers. The Cougars had problems dealing with Mater Dei’s pressure defense and didn’t help their cause much by making only two of six free throw attempts.

As usual, it was Geary who led Mater Dei’s surge in the first half. He hit a 15-foot jump shot with three minutes left in the first quarter to push the Monarchs ahead, 10-4, and then made two free throws with 5:42 left in second quarter to extend the lead to 22-10.

Mater Dei’s biggest lead came when Chris Jackson stole a pass and drove the length of the court to push the score to 25-10. Mater Dei enjoyed an 18-11 rebounding advantage in the half as the Monarchs repeatedly got second and third shots by working hard for offensive rebounds.

Williams, who has seemed to get better with every game, led Mater Dei with 11 points in the first half and added six rebounds. Dave Sedgwick scored all six of Capistrano Valley’s points in the first quarter, and Corey Kost had six of the Cougars’ 14 points in the second.