PREP BASKETBALL STATE CHAMPIONSHIP GAMES : Mater Dei Isn’t Kidding Around

Can anyone stop Jason Kidd?

California’s top high school basketball player will end his prep career Saturday night in the State Division I championship game at Arco Arena when Alameda St. Joseph takes on Santa Ana Mater Dei at 6 p.m.

Kidd, a 6-foot-4 guard headed to California, has been the dominant player on the West Coast since Tracy Murray graduated from Glendora in 1989. As a four-year starter, he has turned St. Joseph into a winner.

He led the Pilots on a dramatic comeback in last year’s state championship game, scoring nine of his 25 points in the fourth quarter as St. Joseph upset Los Angeles Fremont, 67-61, before a sellout crowd at the Oakland Coliseum Arena.

This season, Kidd is averaging 26 points, nine assists, eight rebounds and six steals. The Pilots (31-3) are coming off a 78-73 victory over Sacramento Jesuit in the Northern Regional final.

Mater Dei (34-1) is regarded as the best team in the state. The Monarchs have won 20 consecutive games since losing to Oak Hill Academy of Virginia in the Torrey Pines tournament last December. They are going after their third state title in the last six years, the latest in 1990 over San Francisco Riordan.

Junior guard Ray Jackson, 6-3, has been assigned to cover Kidd, but team leader Reggie Geary probably will help.

Geary, a 6-3 senior headed for Arizona, is averaging 15 points. His dunk with two seconds remaining lifted Mater Dei to a 67-65 victory over Lynwood in the first round of the Southern Regional playoffs on March 10. He scored 12 last Saturday when the Monarchs defeated Mission Viejo Capistrano Valley in the regional final, 55-44.

“For only the second time this season, I feel we’re entering a game as the underdog,” said Gary McKnight, Mater Dei’s coach. “Kidd has showed why he is the best guard in the country, and St. Joseph is the defending champion.

“I’m anxious to see how they stack up against our defense. I’m not sure how much defense they’ve seen this season.”

There is speculation that this might be McKnight’s last game at Mater Dei. Cal State Fullerton officials have asked him to apply for the vacant men’s coaching job. McKnight, 39, is a graduate of Fullerton. In 10 seasons at Mater Dei, he has a 286-25 record and has won seven Southern Section titles.

“I’m just trying to keep all of that out of my mind until next week,” McKnight said. “It’s real flattering to be asked, and I’m very interested in the position. But right now I just want to enjoy this weekend.”

For the first time in state tournament history, the girls’ Division I game will be the featured contest. Palos Verdes Peninsula (32-0) takes on Cupertino Monte Vista (29-1) at 8 p.m. Saturday.

“We are a good team, but I don’t know if we’re the caliber of a Peninsula,” said Virgil Pate, Monte Vista’s coach.

The tournament gets under way this afternoon with boys’ and girls’ title games in Division II and IV. Divisions I, III and V will play Saturday.